Pure
by IWishIWasAWeasley
Summary: "Action, mystery and some beautifully rebellious teenage pride!" -Reviewer :: In the aftermath of Andromeda's betrayal, sixth year Narcissa Black must pick up the shattered pieces of her life. In an unexpected turn of events, she finds comfort in an unexpected place. Can the pair tackle what's thrown at them throughout Lucius' final year of Hogwarts? Pureblood #2 - Sequel to Blood.
1. Chapter 1

**Track: Rise Against - This is Letting Go**

* * *

"And they lived happily ever after."  
That's how her story ends.  
That's the ending my "sister" gets.

Me? I don't get a "happily ever after." I guess it skipped me, or dear Andromeda kept it all for herself.  
It isn't fair!  
She ruined _everything!  
_She had everything you could ever want!  
"I'm tired of living without love!"  
Bitch, please! What was that bond we_ sisters _shared since birth? Acquaintanceship?  
_She_ destroyed it all! So why does she get "happily ever after" and I get a giant mess?  
She doesn't have to face the consequences for what she's done! She ran off with that-that- _that scum_! They ran off without having to face the consequences.  
_BUT I DO!_

After Andromeda ran away that day, my world was turned on its head.

I've been prepped for the day Andromeda graduates since Bella's early years of Hogwarts. As the last Black sister, I'm supposed to complete the legacy, to lead my house as my sisters have done. But now? Am I even going to be allowed into my own dormitory?

Everyone thinks I'm her! I'm either slightly crazy and evil like Bella, or a lying bloodtraitor like Andromeda. It's like everyone's waiting for me to show my true colors; to reveal which of them I'm really like.

I'm neither.  
And now, I have to prove it.  
I have to take back my place in this world.  
Take back what my sister stole from under me.

* * *

Bella.

I've been worried about her for years.  
But her out-there hatred of everything has always been more of an act.  
Until Andromeda and that mudblood.  
Now, her anger act has become her.  
I've lost one sister. Now, I'm loosing the other.

She's so _angry_! Every little thing sets her off! Bella doesn't come around as much lately. The house hold too many memories of Andromeda, I guess. Good and bad. Any memory of our once-sister is painful.

Andromeda's betrayal has affected Bellatrix more than she'd ever admit. It's ruined her marriage. Although she and Rodolphus never loved each other, there was a faint glimmer of hope that things would work out because they respected each other. Now, they seem to have lost that, too. At least Bella has. She doesn't care for, nor respect Rodolphus in any way, shape or form. His blood status and reputation is the only thing she likes about him.  
Bella calls all the shots in that house, for sure. Rodolphus is a prisoner in his own home. I've never seen either of them so unhappy.

No one talks about Andromeda.  
Ever.  
Doing so would earn you a sharp hex from mother or Bella and a good yelling from father. Father was never angry often. Now, he's a grumpy old man. He's always had a soft spot for his "Darling Daughters," now, he and Bellatrix fight, he wants Andromeda to drop dead, and he keeps glaring at me with scrutinizing eyes, wondering when_ I'm_ going to betray him.  
_I'M NOT ANDROMEDA!_  
For the love of Merlin!

My name is Narcissa Black, the one who got left with the mess that Andromeda made. And this is my Sixth Year of Hogwarts.

* * *

**Track: P!nk - Who Knew**

I'm afraid.  
What are my housemates going to do? Everything's changed.  
I had my sixth and seventh years laid out years ago. I'd be on top, calling the shots. Always know what was going on in our house. Now, do i even have friends?  
I haven't been friends with the girls in my year since Bellatrix became the queen of the Slytherins in her day. When that happened, everyone instantly liked and respected Andromeda and I, and I began hanging out with the older kids a lot. The bitches in my year got jealous, and we were never friends after that. But it's never bothered me much, since I have my other friends. Now, I have no power or authority. The girls in my year can do whatever they want to me, and I'm not sure if anyone will stop them.  
For the first time in my life, I'm not looking forward to school.

* * *

I swear I'm the only kid in the history of Hogwarts who has to go to the Hogwarts Express alone.  
That's right.  
_ALONE._

No one goes alone! It's like, a rule that your parents MUST be there to see you off!  
My parents have always gone, dressed in their finest, to see us girls off. I thought Bella would've come. I nearly _begged_ her too! If she came, at least my housemates would be a bit scared of me? But Bella growled about going to training with her teacher.  
"Teacher" as in Voldemort.  
Awesome.  
She gave me a hug before she left, and said- "It's your year. Everyone's waiting for you to betray us, but I know you won't Cissy. Show them all. I still believe in you."  
It was the first time she's been... human, since Andromeda ran away.  
And although I'm scared shitless of school right now, I know I can handle it. I just needed a new perspective.  
It's time to turn on survival mode.  
This is a war, and I'm going to win.

* * *

**Hello, hello!**  
**I'm back from the dead!**  
**Say hello to Narcissa!**  
**I've been so busy this summer! I have this week off, so expect a few chapters this week!**  
**However, I'll be away for the next two weeks, so I wont be writing anything during that time.**  
**In the mean time, enjoy!**

**xoxo IWishIWasAWeasley**


	2. Chapter 2

Track:

I've arrived on Platform 9 3/4.  
Alone.  
But not scared.  
Bella's words have awakened the fight in me.  
Hogwarts, Bring it on!

"Narcissa!" I hear two deep voices calling.  
"Narcissa!" I turn in the direction of the voices. Tarmac Crabbe and Vance Goyle are hurrying towards me.  
Never underestimate the loyalty of some Slytherins.  
Despite their faults, Tarmac and Vance are forever loyal to those who respect them. I happen one of the few that do.  
"My boys!" I smile with relief at the two sixteen-year-olds in front of me. I hug each of them in turn. Since I don't hang out with the girls in my year, my choice of friends is limited. Yaxley's ego is too big for my taste, and Jugson is downright weird. So although Tarmac and Vance aren't the brightest lumos charms' in the classroom, they're my boys.  
Slytherins are judged as uncaring and selfish. But really, if you're respectful and loyal, a lot of them will be respectful and loyal back.  
If you have low expectations for people, expect them to meet those low expectations.

"Narcissa, what's going to happen?" Tarmac asks.  
"Let's find a compartment. We'll talk on the train." I say.

* * *

"I'm surprised you two aren't with the other boys." I admit once the three of us have found an empty compartment.  
"You come first right now, Nars." Tarmac says seriously.  
"So what's been happening? We haven't heard from you all summer!" Vance asks.  
"And we couldn't find your house." Tarmac adds sadly.  
Obviously, you dolt! There are protective enchantments around it!  
Oh well, you gotta love them.  
"I've been tip-toeing around the house all summer, staying out of sight of my parents. They're furious." I explain solemnly.  
_"You stayed in your invisible house all summer?"_ Tarmac exclaims.  
"I practiced occlumency a lot, and apparition. Bella taught me how. I'm rather good now." I remark.  
"No way! You can apparate! That's wicked!" Vance exclaims. My two friends stare at me in awe.  
"Guys, I don't know what they're gunna do to me." I whisper about the rest of the Slytherins.  
"Well then, you'll just have to stay close to us." Vance says as though it's obvious.

I think I can survive this year.

* * *

"Black, Regulus!"  
Professor McGonagall called out my baby cousin's name in the silent Great Hall. Little Regulus hurried up the steps and sat on the stool. McGonagall placed the aging hat on the small boys head, and then,  
nothing.  
Absolutely nothing.  
No house was called for a full minute.  
What could be taking that stupid old hat so long! Put him in Slytherin or he'll be slaughtered! I'LL be slaughtered!

I look over at the Gryffindor table. I haven't seen Sirius so hopeful looking since his own sorting. Of course HE wants his little brother in Gryffindor with him. He just wants the whole family to turn into blood traitors then!

Regulus has his eyes glued shut in concentration. The hat keeps whispering to him. His hands are now covering his face. The small boy shakes his head.  
"Very well, I've a fair idea where to put you..." The Sorting Hat begins. He opens his prim wide, and shouts:  
"SLYTHERIN!"

Oh, Merlin, thank you! Relief floods my stomach. I feel better than I have in months. Sirius got away with choosing Gryffindor, but Regulus is the pet, the baby. And after Andromeda, the adults in my family are really cracking the whip on loyalty. I'll sleep better tonight now that Regulus is safe.  
Wait, where's Sirius?  
I spot my younger cousin storming out of the Great Hall.  
His face. It was,  
pain?  
Anger, disappointment, sadness, anxiety, everything!  
I know Sirius wanted Regulus with him, but I thought it was so Sirius wouldn't be an outcast by himself. Maybe there's more to it. I may never know.

I spot Regulus at the end of the table. It appears he's made a friend. An east-Indian boy, Gibbon, is smiling at Regulus, happy to have made a friend.  
They're just like all the other first years.  
So why does everyone see them as evil the moment the hat says Slytherin?

* * *

After Dumbledore's depressing speech about dark times, us banding together, and students being Voldemorts weapons, we've all been sent to bed.  
The moment I've been dreading.  
Not because I'm not tired.  
But because of the cheerful trio who are surely awaiting my arrival in my dormitory.  
A permanent headache in the form of three sixth year girls:  
Athena Gibbon  
Bridget Bulstrode  
and Iris Kwaad.

Yes, my three dorm-mates will surely have something to say about my former sister. This should be good.  
Merlin help me.

I've made it to my dormitory. I'm not _afraid_ of dumb, dumber and dumbest, I'm just not looking forward to this exchange.  
Alright Narcissa, you're not scared of them. This is good. Self control. Easy.

The room goes completely silent when I strut in.  
(I don't mean to strut. It's just how we Blacks walk.)  
My three roommates stop whispering and whirl around to face me, their best attempts at intimidating looks sprawled across their average looking faces.  
Yes, I know I'm prettier than them.

Finally, someone speaks.  
"Well, well, well. Look who decided to show her face in public at last! Brave girl." Athena Gibbon begins.  
"More like stupid girl." Bridget Bulstrode adds.  
Iris just looks nervous. As usual. Iris Kwaad is a timid girl with a nervous nature. She's an easy target for bullying; too easy. Which is why the other girls would rather tolerate her as a follower rather than spend their energy bullying her. They save it for people who can fight back. Like me.  
"What gives you the right to march in here like you own the place, scum?" Bridget has always been the harshest of the three. Tall, broad shouldered, bigger boned Bridget has never been much of a prize in the eyes of the boys. Her dark, square features wouldn't be bad looking under her short dark hair if she'd wipe that scowl off her face.  
"You're not welcome here, Narcissa. You and the rest of your blood traitor family, thinking you can control everyone else. Andromeda's shown her true colors. Just get it over with!" Athena flips her sandy, dark blond hair and glares at me with her blue eyes under too much eyeliner.  
Iris looks on, her big brown eyes nervously watching the scene unfold, her mousy brown hair covering half her face like a curtain.  
"Are we finished here? As much as I _don't_ enjoy your company, I do need to sleep." I reply sarcastically.  
"Oh, is that really the best she can do? You're slipping, Black." Bridget snarls.  
"I've had it with you!" Athena explodes. "You think you're so cool for hanging out with older kids, but they only tolerated you because they were afraid of Bellatrix cursing them! What are you going to do, now that you've run out of sisters to follow around?"  
"Apparently Athena's been wanting to say that for quite some time now." I snicker.  
"Oh, that's been waiting years to come out, scum!" She shrieks at me.  
I walk out of the room, into the bathroom to prepare for bed, still snickering.


	3. Chapter 3

Things have changed in Slytherin House.

Before, everyone had a distinct leader.  
(Bellatrix or Andromeda.)  
Now, I've fallen from grace. I'm not a shoe-in like I was before. Everyone's taken this opportunity to be on top. All the boys want to be king of the dungeons. It's all out warfare. Battle of the minds.

While we all used to work as a collective group, now everyone's divided.

All thanks to Evan and Lucius.  
Ah, Lucius Malfoy and Evan Rosier. The best friends forever, dynamic duo of obnoxiousness. They were set to take over the world, using fantastic co-operation and charming smiles. But alas, where did things go wrong?  
There was indeed, trouble in paradise. When the third member of the party, Theo Urqhaert, was expelled along with Rabastan Lestrange last year, Evan and Lucius bonded together. Until Lucius revealed that he had a girlfriend.  
Lucius had been seeing some Beauxbatons girl throughout their entire sixth year. Yet he hadn't uttered a single word about it to Theo _or_ Evan. Evan was to say, heartbroken. He was furious with Lucius for keeping something so important. But that was just a small part. You see, Evan and Lucius had a huge thing for the _same girl_. Evan had told Lucius all about his feelings for Isabelle. Yet Lucius never showed any signs of a crush on her at all. Then he finally admitted that he had been dating her the entire time Evan was agonizing over her.

Some friend.

But who am I to judge. There's probably more to the story, but Evan's my cousin. So I guess I'm a tad biased.

So, Evan felt betrayed and the friendship was henceforth disbanded, leaving both boys broken and desperate for something to fill the void in their non-existent hearts. So, they go for power.  
Both boys want to be superior over the other. Both want to lead the Slytherins. Now that I'm out of the way, one of them will.

But which one?

No one knows.

The boys are so similar. Rich, good-looking, influential, persuasive, smart, strong, talented, athletic, purest of blood. Both are star quidditch players.

The way I see it, Lucius is more popular, but Evan is better at quidditch. Most people don't realize the differences, but I see them. I haven't properly seen either of the boys yet, but today I will after classes.

This should be interesting.

"I don't get it." Tarmac says to Vance and I.  
"Gee, that's a switch!" Vance rolls his eyes at his best friend.  
"Shut up, you blast-ended skank!" Tarmac shoots back.  
"Gasp! How _dare_ you!" Vance says in over-dramatic mock offense.  
"I am so done with your sleeping around! He was _my_ boyfriend! You had no right to seduce him!" Tarmac says in his best girl voice.  
"Well, it wasn't hard, so you clearly ain't satisfying yo man!" Vance takes it a step further with his infamous black-girl voice.  
"Girlfriend, you are messin with the wrong bitch!" Tarmac concludes.

The scene is utterly hysterical, because it's big, overweight, Tarmac Crabbe, his head shaved, with a lost look on his round face, and Vance Goyle, tall, broad, strong, short-haired, big boned, with square features, both sixteen, pretending to be black women despite their deep voices. The result is utter madness, and the three of us are all left in stitches, laughing our arses off. I of course, giggle uncontrollably, but quietly. I'm still a lady, after all.

Bella has always stressed that I should carry myself like a lady, but it's easier to preach than practice. Personally, I've never considered screaming at people who accidentally bump into you or cursing peoples noses off for kicks to be very ladylike. Just don't tell Bella that, because she _will _hex you for it.

After we've all calmed down, Tarmac begins again.  
"What I don't get, is why neither Lucius nor Evan are bragging about being made quidditch captain. They've been tense about who'd get it since _before_ their fight. They both love to brag, so why isn't one of them bragging?"

"That is the most insightful thing you've ever said, mate." Vance says in awe. I feel the same way. Tarmac Crabbe, said something- _smart_?  
"Did neither of them get it?" Tarmac asked. Well, that's stupid. Who else would get it? At least Tarmac hasn't turned smart on us. That'd be too weird.  
"Impossible." I say, shaking my head. "They're the two most qualified players in the house, both in seventh year. Giving it to anyone else would be _mental._"  
"So why aren't one of the egotistic idiots celebrating?" Vance asks aloud.  
I've been so preoccupied, I never even thought about who actually _got_ the captaincy.  
"Well, Walden left with Lucius awhile ago, so that probably explains why Evan's alone in the corner over there." Vance said, gesturing towards a dark corner of the Slytherin common room.  
"Why didn't you tell me Evan's in here! I need to talk to him! Whatever, see you boys." I say before getting up and moving across the room towards my cousin. It's excellent that he's alone; I know he won't say anything stupid about Andromeda and I to boost his own popularity. I'm not sure if he would or not, but you never know in this house.

"Evan, why are you by yourself?" I ask, taking a seat in the handsome, green armchair beside him.  
"Narcissa! Thank Merlin, I wanted to talk to you alone." My seventeen year old cousin says. His brown hair and dark, rugged good looks turned my way.  
"Where do you stand in the whole Andromeda thing? I know your family doesn't talk about her, but I need to ask." He whispers.  
"My family has no place for blood traitors, Evan. You know me." I reply.  
"I do know you, Narcissa. And you and Andromeda were sisters. You cared about your sisters a great deal." Evan continues to whisper.  
"She's no sister of mine Evan. I am loyal to my family and my house."  
"That's my cousin." Evan smiles, relieved. "This whole mess on top of my fight with Lucius is getting complicated. At least I know that I can count on you."  
"You can always count on me Evan. Now, I have a question. Did you or did you not get named quidditch captain?" I ask. Evan visibly tenses. His smile fades.  
"No, I did not. _Malfoy_ must've gotten it. We both know I'm a better player than that _scum_." Evan hisses.  
"Malfoy's good, but you are better. I don't understand." I say solemnly.  
"If Lucius is quidditch captain, why isn't he bragging by now?" I ask Evan.  
"I can't figure it out! It's driving me nuts! He should just get it over with, rather than tormenting me!"

Now that's just odd. Slytherins brag. A lot. We have a lot to brag about. Lucius Malfoy, I'll admit, has a lot to brag about. So why the shy act all of a sudden?

"It's not like him to keep to himself. I wonder what's up." I wonder aloud.  
"Beats me." Evan sighed miserably.

As he says this, the stone door slides open, and Lucius enters the common room with Walden Macnair. Evan doesn't even flinch, and stubbornly refuses to look in their direction. He's pretending to be very interested in his potions book. So interested, that the oaf doesn't realize that he's reading it upside-down.  
"He really hurt you, huh?" I say quietly.

Evan looks up from his upside-down textbook, startled. For a moment he looks at me, shocked that I've seen through his act. Then, he regains his composure, looks back at his textbook (after flipping it right-side up) and says:  
"I don't know what you're talking about, Narcissa."

His acting skills might almost come close to mine.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks to Chibi-Lil for your unfailingly fabulous reviews!**  
**And to every on of my other reviewers! You guys made me want to update faster, so here you go! :)**

* * *

"Narcissa."  
The following evening, I'm interrupted from my reading -(Tarmac and Vance already have detention)-by a smooth, deep, arrogant voice. I look up into the steely grey eyes of Lucius Malfoy. He seems a bit put-off.

"Evening Lucius." I drawl.  
"Listen, I know Evan got quidditch captain. So would you tell him to cut it out with the games? I know he's dying to announce it to the entire school and rub it in my face, so could he just get it over with?" Lucius mutters irritably, looking me right in the eye.

Hold up.

"Lucius, Evan isn't quidditch captain. We thought _you_ were." I say slowly.  
"What do you mean? I'm definitely not quidditch captain." He replies.  
"Well, neither is Evan. He's been waiting for you to start taunting him about it, actually."  
"But, who else could it be? It was between Evan and I. We're the oldest, and the best!" His chest puffs up a bit as he says this.  
"I don't understand. Choosing anyone else is just mad! Why hasn't anyone mentioned being named quidditch captain by now?" I wonder aloud.

"Nars!" The familiar voice of Tarmac -back from his detention- echoes through the Slytherin common room. Lucius and I look up in unison.  
"Where's Evan?" Vance asks.  
I take notice of an official looking scroll and a small package, wrapped together in scarlet ribbon in Vance's hand.  
"What've you got there, Vance?" I ask. Lucius looks on in curiosity.  
"Dunno. It's for Evan whatever it is, from Dumbledore." Vance replies.

As though on queue, the stone door slides open and Evan Rosier enters the room.  
"Oi! Evan! Over here!" Tarmac says. Evan looks at us, and notices Lucius beside me.  
"Oh, get over it and come here, you oaf!" I say.  
"What are you doing with _him_?" Evan growls, glaring at Lucius. The tall blond is about to reply, but I cut him off-  
"Never you mind. I'll have you know that _neither _of you have been named quidditch captain, so you can forget this stupid rivalry, you both lose."  
"Wha- neither of us? But he-" Evan sputters.  
"Lucius never got the title either, Evan. We don't know who did."

"Evan! You got a package from Dumbledore!" Tarmac cuts in.  
"Dumbledore? What for?" Evan asks.  
"Open it!" Tarmac says excitedly.

Evan pulls on the scarlet ribbon and the letter unravels. The small, wrapped package drops into his large hand, calloused from years of gripping a broom. He hands it to Vance, not trusting it near Tarmac. Evan scans the letter quickly with his eyes.

"What does it say?" I ask.  
"It says I'm"-  
"QUIDDITCH CAPTAIN!" Tarmac yells.

Vance, overcome by curiosity, has opened the wrapping of the package. He and Tarmac are staring excitedly at the contents. A gleaming, silver badge with an ornate "C" on it lay shining in Vance's palm.

"Let me see that!" Evan says excitedly, snatching his badge from Vance. By now, a small crowd has formed around us.  
"I'm still lost, Evan." I say impatiently, waiting for my cousin to explain.  
"The letter says that the owl delivering the badge was attacked and the badge and letter were stolen! It took awhile to realize that the delivering hadn't been made, but Dumbledore's put it right now, and the badge was originally mine! The school owl that delivered my book list did look a little frazzled, come to think of it." Evan says, staring, wide-eyed, at his new badge.

"Ooh, Evan, can I see your badge?"  
"Can I touch it?" Petina Knack and Miranda Gies, two seventh year girls, are batting their eyes at Evan, trying to get as close as they can to Slytherin's new quidditch captain. Within minutes, Evan has been drug across the room, into the chair by the fire where Andromeda used to sit. Someone has pinned his new badge to his chest, and a group of girls are arguing silently over who gets to give Evan a shoulder massage.

It seems as though all the boys from sixth and seventh year have crammed into the sofas around Evan, all wanting a spot on the team. The fifth years, Carlile Selwyn and Russell Parkinson, are sitting on the floor near Evan's feet.

I look over at Lucius. He looks like he's been hit by a bludger.

I think we've found the new leader of Slytherin House.

* * *

"Yes, Narcissa, I do insist. You being my right-hand during quidditch tryouts will greatly help your reputation in our house."  
Evan has persuaded me to sit with him during quidditch tryouts.  
"That blood-traitor has tarnished the way people view you. We have to work to build our family back up to it's former glory. By next year, no on will question your loyalty." Evan says.

Ah yes, next year, after you've graduated. _Then_ it's okay for me to be back on top where I belong? _Thanks_ cousin!  
Oh well. We _are_ Slytherins. I'll take all the help I can get.

"This'll help secure you your spot back in our little society. Trust me, cousin." Evan finishes as we reach the quidditch pitch.  
My roommates are already in the stands. Their angry glares pierce me when they see me strut onto the pitch next to Evan.

Jealousy at it's finest.

Many other Slytherins are present, even Recto Jugson has shown up. Everyone hates Jugson, and Jugson hates everyone. Oh well.  
The players are already on the pitch, and all eyes are on Evan and I.

"_WHO STOLE MY BROOM?" _A deep voice thunders from the far end of the pitch.  
Lucius looks livid; his blond almost shoulder-length hair flowing slightly in the breeze.

"Problem, Malfoy?" Evan says mockingly.  
"Damn right there is. Someone nicked my broom! And don't act like you had nothing to do with it!" Lucius says coldly.  
"Accusing the captain of stealing your broom? Smart move, mate. If you're a half decent quidditch player, a broom won't matter much. There's plenty of school brooms, if you think you can handle it. Now if you'll excuse me, I have tryouts to conduct." Evan smiles maliciously.  
Wait, someone stole Lucius' broom? Why does he think it's Evan? That's mental!

"Narcissa! Come on! We have to get off the field!" Evan calls, bringing me out of my thoughts.  
I forget about Lucius and follow my cousin to our seats on the side of the pitch.


	5. Chapter 5

**RoLouG and Mintfrost29, you kind words are such an encouragement to me. Thanks to all my reviewers for taking the time to review :)**

* * *

Tryouts are underway. Evan is currently choosing a seeker.

"What do you think, Narcissa?" My cousin asks me. I'm genuinely surprised he'd ask. I recover, and look up at the prospects. The choice is obvious.  
"Carlile may be younger, but he's always been the best by far." I say.  
Evan smiles and nods in agreement.

"Oi! Seekers! You're done!" He calls. All the seekers descend to the ground and crowd around Evan and I. Evan gives me a light nudge, urging me to speek. For whatever reason, Evan thought it'd be more glamorous for the pretty girl to announce the chosen players. So I say graciously:  
"Congratulations, Carlile. You're back on the team."  
Fifth year Carlile Selwyn lets out a cheer in triumph, a grin spreading across the dark skin of his face. The remaining rejected seekers slump off the pitch.

The beaters are more difficult to pick. Tarmac and Vance are trying out for the two spots, and they're doing quite well.  
But Evan has his eyes glued to Miranda and Petina.  
I admit, they surprised us all.  
Neither of the girls are very big, but they can sure swing those bats around, smiling maliciously whenever the bludger hits its target.  
"Those two have blown me away! I don't need to see anymore. BEATERS! YOU'RE FINISHED!" Evan calls. The beaters come to a halt on the ground in front of us. Tarmac and Vance aren't even looking at Evan, they're looking hopefully, right at me.

Shit.

Evan nudges me again.  
"Uhm, congratulations Petina and Miranda." Is all I can manage.  
"You girls blew me away." Evan adds, winking at the pair.  
I can't bear to see Tarmac and Vance's faces. They wanted this so bad. I cast my eyes downwords.  
Miranda and Petina join Carlile behind Evan and I, the three of them exchanging high fives.  
Now for the hard part.

The chasers.

"So here's how it's going to work." Evan calls out. "If I call your name, that means you're out, get off my pitch! The last three flyers in the air are the three new chasers. No ifs, ands or buts. Got it? Good. Now, impress me!"  
The chaser hopefuls soar into the air. Some are easy to eliminate. Evan has quickly narrowed it down to nine.

"Keats! You're done!"  
"Rolds, go with him!"

Seven.

"Mulciber, come back next year!"  
"Avery, you have some growing to do!" The two second years leave the pitch together.  
"Carrow! Sorry mate!" Amycus doesn't look pleased.

Four.

Only Walden Macnair, Timur Yaxley, Russell Parkinson and Lucius remain.  
This is it.  
After what feels like ages, Evan has made up his mind.

"Lucius! Get off my pitch!" He bellows.

Wait.

"Evan, don't you mean-" I start.  
"Walden, Timur and Russell, congratulations. You're the final three members of the team!"  
_"WHAT?" _The entire pitch -even the three chasers- gasp in unison.  
"I'm the captain! If you don't like it, leave! Come on team, lets go celebrate! Girls in the stands, you can come too!" Evan calls. My three idiot roommates shriek with glee.

I'm the only one who notices Lucius Malfoy storm off the pitch, alone.

* * *

"But Evan! He's one of the best chasers in the house! He'd really boost our chances of winning the cup!"  
Walden Macnair and Evan are quietly arguing over the new quidditch lineup.  
"Walden, I won't say it again. Malfoy is not on the team! His trial was rubbish!"  
"Because he had a school broom!"  
"Can everyone stop blaming the ruddy broom? If he was any good it wouldn't have mattered."  
"Come on Evan! You chose little Parkinson over Lucius? What's wrong with you!"  
"Nothing is wrong with me Walden! I like to start training them young. Russell will be fine. Now if I hear another word against my decision, you're off the team. I don't need players who question my authority." Evan finishes.  
I say nothing. I'd like to say a few things, but Evan's on an ego trip, so I keep my mouth shut.

Things continue this way for several weeks.

-o-

Everyone loves Evan.

They've always had a fairly equal opinion of Lucius and Evan, but now my classmates have an excuse to like Evan better than Lucius. The boys all wanted on the team, and the girls know that Lucius has a girlfriend. So for several weeks, everyone continues to fall at Evan's feet. Evan usually remembers to call me over to sit with them. Although it's boring, I need to reclaim my place here.

Since Rita Skeeter and the Casavant twins are gone, Slytherin House is lacking in the slut departement. Athena has stepped up to the plate, and dances on tables at any opportunity.

Lucius is always absent during the nightly entertainment, off to see his girlfriend in France.  
He's becoming more forgotten by our housemates by the day.

* * *

"Narcissa!"

I look up from my Daily Prophet to see Lucius hurrying towards me.  
"Yes, Lucius?" I say.  
"It's your daft cousin! He wants to be the next Rabastan. He's taken everyone on a big invasion of Hufflepuff, claims it's for soiling your family!" Lucius explains.  
"Why didn't he tell me!" I inquire.  
"Because the entire thing is a bad idea and it's going to blow up in our faces; they're all going to get caught!"  
"Well, if they want to be idiots, there's not much we can do."  
"Severus is too young! He'll do whatever his superiors want to be accepted! Same with Regulus!"

I stop dead. _"He took Regulus?"  
_"They're all dead meat."  
"Regulus just got here! I'm supposed to look out for him, make sure he stays out of trouble!" I finish.  
"Then lets go." Lucius declares.  
"How are we supposed to help anyone?" I ask.  
"We'll figure it out when we get there." Lucius answers, heading for the door.

I draw my wand and follow.


	6. Chapter 6

Lucius and I navigate past teachers and prefects using the secret passageways we've learnt from years of patrolling the corridors as prefects. Soon, we are at the kitchens, near the Hufflepuff entrance.

_"Homonium Revelio!"_ I say quietly.  
"Down there." Lucius says, pointing down a small corridor. My spell has detected multiple people down it.

We peer around the corner and take in the scene.

The boys, along with Miranda, Petina and Bridget, are in the process of torturing several blindfolded Hufflepuffs. Athena and Iris are watching from the side. Iris looks like she's about to wet herself.  
I non-verbally cast a charm over the Hufflepuff's ears so they don't hear anything.

"Alright, party's over. Time to go!" I say loudly.  
"There are teachers coming! Lets move!" Lucius follows my lead.  
"Are you two mad?" Ah, Athena. Always the smart one.  
"Lucius! Get out of here! Can't you take the hint that you're not wanted?" Evan emerges from the middle of the crowd. Then, he sees me.  
"Narcissa? What are you doing with _him_?" My cousin hisses.  
"We happened to be the only ones left out of the loop! Now, there's no time for this! We passed Sprout and Flitwick, discussing a possible disturbance in the Hufflepuff corridor. _That's us_! They're on their way! Let's _go_!" I say firmly.  
"No way! We're not finished here! I don't know what you did to my cousin, Malfoy, but you've messed with her head! I'll sort it out later." Evan says defiantly.

_"Shut up!"_  
Everyone turns.

It's Iris.

"Don't you hear that?" She says quietly.

Footsteps.  
Getting louder.

"We told you idiots! Now, _move_! Through here!" Lucius calls, beckoning to a hidden corridor behind a tapestry.  
"Regulus, you first!" I call fiercely. My baby cousin hesitates, then obeys. Severus follows him out. The rest follow.  
Lucius holds the tapestry aside for me and then follows me through it.

"Not so fast, Lucius! Someone's got to take the blame for this mess! You sent all my possible blamees away, so now I have to use you! _Stupefy!_" Evan calls.  
"_Protego!_" I yell, blocking his spell from both of us. "_Are you daft?"  
_"Narcissa! This doesn't concern you! Don't betray the family!" Evan says.  
"I'm not betraying anyone, you've gone mad!"  
Lucius grabs my hand and runs through the tapestry, pulling me with him.

Once we're behind the tapestry, Lucius whirls around and points his wand at it-  
_"Clausis murum!"_He says.

The back of the tapestry turns to stone to match the walls around us, moments before the footsteps stop.  
"Merlins beard! Mr. Rosier, explain yourself!" I've never heard Flitwick so mad.  
"Behind the tapestry! Look!" Evan calls desperately.  
"There's nothing here, Mr. Rosier, just a wall. Now quit playing games. To the Headmaster! Now!"

Lucius pulls my hand again, and we take off, towards the Slytherin common room.

* * *

**Track: Just Like a Pill - P!nk**

The consequences of Evan's failure are great.

Since Lucius and I saved everyone's arses, they've all decided that we should be the leaders, rather than Evan.  
Basically, Lucius is the king of the castle, and I'm the queen.

I'm on top again.  
Although this isn't how I expected it to happen.

The older girls love me, and we've all become friends. Athena and Bridget look murderous everytime they see me with Miranda and Petina.  
Speaking of Miranda and Petina, they've seemingly lost interest in Evan. They try to seduce Lucius, but it never works. They haven't given up though. They go after Walden when they get sick of rejection.

Evan's got detention every night until further notice, and he's off the quidditch team. The Captain's badge has been given to Lucius. Russell was removed as a chaser since Lucius is now playing, but it turns out he's a much better Keeper than Chaser. Everything has fallen into place. Except that Evan is furious with me. We'll make up eventually.

In the meantime, Lucius and I make a pretty good team.

* * *

Life continues in a cycle for the following weeks as the weather grows colder.

I wake up, ignore my roommate's jealous glares and find my friends. Eat breakfast, go to class, lunch, class, supper. I study (Though not tremendously hard) while the others have quidditch practice. Sometimes I go watch. I've voiced my dislike of Athena's table dancing, so it's stopped, at least while I'm around. Lucius spends most evenings apparrating back and forth to France to be with Isabelle, so I entertain our followers. It gets tiresome.  
The price of popularity.

* * *

**Track: Chemisrty of a Car Crash - Shiny Toy Guns**

The familiar cycle my life has fallen into is about to be disrupted.

I'm patrolling the corridors, (yes, I still do Prefect duties) taking secret passageways around the school.  
This is so boring.  
Bathroom break anyone?

I don't even have to use the bathroom, but the Prefects bathroom is cool, so who cares.  
I say the password and enter the elaborate bathroom. However, before I can take in the magnificence of it, I hear something.  
Crying?  
Who's crying alone in the Prefects bathroom at this time of night?  
Behind one of the ornate columns I see a tall, muscular figure, crying into his knees. His face is covered by almost shoulder length blond hair.

Lucius Malfoy.

Crying alone in the bathroom?

"Lucius?" I say cautiously. He looks up, sees me, and buries his face in his knees.  
The pain in his eyes sends a shake through body. Is Lucius crying harder?  
I guess being found balling your eyes out in the middle of the night by a girl who could easily tell the entire world to boost her own power is a bit depressing.  
Out of the corner of my eye, I see something twitch.  
Lucius has his wand out.  
Oh hell no.  
_"Expelliarmus!"_ I say before Lucius can cast whatever hex he was going to hit me with. The boys eyes widen.  
_"What the bloody hell is wrong with you?"_ I shriek.  
"If you tell anyone-" He begins. Oh Merlin.  
"I wasn't going to! But keep acting like a prat and maybe I will!" I say harshly.  
Malfoy puts his face to his knees, although he's not crying anymore.  
"Lucius?" I say delicately.  
"She's gone. Missing. They don't know where she w-went." It's all Lucius manages before the tears return.  
"Who?"  
"I-Isabelle."

Lucius' girlfriend from France.  
I don't ask more questions. I know he needs comforting, but I'm not very good at it. The Blacks never cry.  
Then again, the Malfoys don't either.

I sit down on the floor beside him and put an arm around his shoulder. I'm so small and he's so muscular that my arm barely reaches. He involuntarily lurches forward as sobs wrack his body. I wrap both arms around him as he cries out his agony.

If this is love, I don't want any part in it.


	7. Chapter 7

**THIS WILL BE MY LAST UPDATE FOR TWO WEEKS! I am leaving for a United Nations Seminar. Hopefully I'll be able to post one chapter in between, but no promises. See you in two weeks guys! xoxo**

* * *

Lucius seems to be determined to forget about his crying session in the bathroom, which suits me just fine. Lucius Malfoy crying over a girl is still new to me. It's proof he's not made of stone, also a new thing.  
One thing that's changed is he sometimes hangs around with the rest of us in the evenings. Some nights he wants to be alone though, and everyone assumes he's in France. Maybe he is. I don't need to ask. I think he's grateful for it. Gradually, Lucius gets more comfortable around me again. He's more reclusive and introverted though, his face always streaked with worry. Determined not to let him hole up in his misery, I make sure Lucius sticks around more often as time goes on. He can go cry his eyes out in the French countryside at night if he wants to, but during the day, I won't let him stop living. I don't know why I care, I don't really know Lucius, and he's the only thing between me and the total power I was meant to have, but I'm content with the setup.  
This year is definitely more interesting than anticipated.

* * *

"Nars, isn't that your families owl?" Vance asks at breakfast.  
"It is... But, my parents never write!" I say, confused at the appearance of my families White-Faced Scops Owl, Purgo.  
Purgo swoops low over the table, drops a letter in front of my plate and flies away.  
Nice seeing you too.

"It's from Bellatrix?" I marvel aloud. Why would Bella write? She's been so angry lately and doesn't have time for me anymore. I read on.

I drop the letter right in my porridge.

"Nars?" Tarmac says uneasily, clearly concerned by the look on my face.

"I-I" I sputter. I can't voice it. It can't be true.  
"Are you serious?" Vance says, ready the letter.  
No, Sirius is my cousin, you oaf.  
Never gets old.

Focus, Narcissa!

_"Bellatrix is pregnant?"_ Tarmac gasps.

* * *

By evening, I'm still panicking.

Bella's having a baby.  
Bellatrix.  
Bellatrix who hates the world.  
Bella with the too-short temper.  
Bella with the worlds crappiest marriage.  
Even our parents have a better marriage than Rodolphus and Bella.

Bellatrix hates kids.  
She hated kids even when _she_ was a kid!

"The astronomy tower?" A deep, smooth voice fills the entire room.  
I look up, into the steely grey eyes of Lucius.  
"I come here to think." I reply.  
"You too? I thought this place was my secret." He says.

"What are you doing up here?" I ask.  
"Crabbe and Goyle were asking around for you. Those two oafs can't function without you!" Lucius smirked.  
"They're not a brilliant as Albus Dumbledore, but they're my two closest mates." I say, standing up for my boys.  
"Dumbledore's not as smart as everyone thinks." Lucius grumbles, leaning on the railing and looking out at the lake.  
What's he got against the Headmaster? I mean, the man doesn't favor Slytherin's by any means and loves mudbloods, but otherwise I don't have a problem with him.  
"Either way, your posse was searching desperately for you, something about how upset you were this morning. You always listen to my whining, so what's up?"  
Lucius is the last person I'd expect to care about someone else's problems. Then again, he's the last person who I expected to find crying in a bathroom. I hope his future children don't inherit that habit.

"Bellatrix is pregnant." I say simply.  
Silence.  
"Woah." Is all he says. He walks over from the railing and sits down beside me. "That's a bad thing then?"  
"I don't know! I mean, she's my sister! I should be happy for her, right? But, Bella hates kids." I sigh.  
"Kids along with everything else." Lucius chuckles. "Sorry. I know you two are close." He says quickly, looking me in the eye.  
"But it's true! She hates everything! She's so _angry_ after Andromeda! How is she supposed to properly raise a kid?" I say desperately.  
"Would Rodolphus be much help?"  
"He'll make things worse. They don't even love each other." I sigh.  
"Then why'd they get married?" Lucius looks genuinely puzzled.  
"Because it was the right thing to do." I reply simply.  
Lucius says nothing, not wanting to pressure me further, although I can tell he's dying of curiosity.

"Our parents arranged Bella's marriage to Rodolphus. They've never loved each other, but they wouldn't dare defy their parents and shame the family. So, they did it. They got married, and they've been miserable ever since. I guess _something's_ going well if Bella's pregnant, but that house is poisonous. I swear it's filled with dementors; it just sucks all the happiness out of you when you're in it, with that miserable pair. I guess we're all a miserable lot. But Rodolphus and Bellatrix sacrificed their own happiness for their families honor. They did the right thing, and now they're going to bring new life into the world, and I'm not convinced that they should." I explain. I've never done this before, share my feelings. I don't think Lucius has either. We've kept everything bottle up for so long.

He says nothing then. Instead, Lucius stands up, and pulls me up with him. Then, he hugs me.

I never could've picture Lucius Malfoy hugging anyone, let alone me, before this moment.

* * *

"It's like they became best friends overnight!"

That's what people whisper about Lucius and I.  
And in a way, they're right.  
That night, Lucius and I established an unspoken trust and understanding of one another. We're both in the same boat, to-high expectations from our families, to-low expectations from everyone else. We've fallen from the top to the bottom, and clawed our way back up again, together. I was the only one there when he needed someone, and he was there for me.

We look at life and the challenges it brings in the same way. We always get along and we're the perfect team. Unstoppable.

* * *

**Did anyone catch the joke about Lucius' children inheriting his habit of crying in bathrooms? If not, I'll be very disappointed indeed.**


	8. Chapter 8

**I have risen from the dead! AN to follow.**

* * *

"Narcissa?" Lucius and I are reading quietly in the astronomy tower, bundled up to might the early winter air. Tarmac and Vance have detention and everyone else is annoying.  
"Yes?" A lady always says 'yes,' not 'yeah.'  
"Before this year, neither of us would be caught dead reading." Lucius snickers. He's right.  
I guess all the crap that's happened to us lately has made us both a bit of introverts.

"Question." Lucius finally says after a long silence.  
"Yes?"  
"When you were still relying on Evan for 3 months, you didn't seem to really mind that you weren't up on top like you were supposed to be."  
I think about this. He's right, I guess.

"Our house is made up of rich purebloods and poor wannabes, truthfully most of them annoy me." I begin. "Power and popularity used to be so important to me, but after Andromeda, it just seemed so pointless. She had both, and she threw it all away. After that, I just didn't want other peoples company, I guess I felt different, separate, from them. But Evan loves the attention, so I was content to let him have it for awhile."  
"So why do you care now?" He asks.  
"Because I have something to prove." I answer. "I'm not Bellatrix, loud, proud and disturbed. I'm not Andromeda, the traitor who fooled us all. I'm Narcissa. I'm me."  
It feels good to say it out loud. I feel something inside me, like a weight has been lifted? No, it's not that. But something about sharing my mission with Lucius just feels right. Lucius speaks-

"I used to just see you as the youngest Black sister, or the hot blond one. But you're not. You're Narcissa. You're quiet, which everyone else misinterprets as snobby. You're so loyal, you could be in Hufflepuff; if you had looserish qualities. You put your family and close friends first, but yourself before those you don't really know. You're a bit naive about the dark arts, but you prefer to be that way. You're realistic and rational. You're a great listener and the most trustworthy person I've ever met. You're Narcissa, my best friend."

Most girls would flip out if the _gorgeous_ Lucius Malfoy called them hot. I don't mind, for some reason. I guess it's a best friend thing.

How did we get here? Maybe it's because when we look at each other, we see ourselves.

* * *

"Alright, you've been grumpy for days. I've given you time for yourself. What's up?" I ask.  
Lucius has been storming around for the past few days. I've stayed in the common room, leaving him to work his problems out for himself in the astronomy tower. Now, I want an explanation.

"Isabelle." He snarls.  
"That's not the tone you usually use for your french mademoiselle." I remark, eyebrow raised. I sit down facing him on the floor of the astronomy tower.

"She ran away." He whispers.  
"Shit." I say what I'm thinking.  
"Why the Helga didn't she tell me! She just disappeared! Her parents have no idea where she is, they're distraught! They have no idea why she left!"  
"Families that look perfect on the outside can be anything but." I reply sadly, thinking of my own shattered home.  
"Don't I know it." Lucius huffs.  
"What's that supposed to mean?"  
"Nothing. I just can't believe Isabelle! I mean, if she was in trouble, I would've helped her!"  
"I don't know what to say, Lucius. I don't know why she ran away." I reply solemnly.  
"I'm not even mad! It's more than that. I feel, betrayed? Almost. Maybe I'm just angry because she's made me feel like a fool. I thought she'd turn to me if she were in trouble. But she didn't. It's like everything I thought she felt towards me was all in my head."  
"I know how you feel." I say quietly.  
"Shut up Narcissa." Lucius growls, not in the mood for bullcrap.

"I'm sirius Lucius. In fact, I think I know betrayal better than you do. My sister Andromeda all but threw my family to the dogs when she eloped. Our pureblood society could've turned and tossed us out. I very nearly was. But I worked my arse off and I'm back on top. My sister abandoned everything that our family valued. Andromeda deserted Bellatrix when she needed her sisters support. She left me to climb out of the wreckage that is my family and everything about it. Andromeda never stopped to think about how her betrayal would affect Bellatrix, but mostly, how it would affect me. If she did think about it, she obviously doesn't care. Andromeda said before running off that she was tired of living without love. It was like a slap in the face! _I_ loved her! Bellatrix loved her! And that's saying a lot because Bella doesn't love anything! But she loved Andromeda. And Andromeda threw that away; tossed her sisters-_me_-aside." I say. Lucius just stares. I never talk about Andromeda. No one does. It's an unspoken rule in the pureblood society to never speak of Andromeda Black, the blood-traitor who deceived us all. My family especially never mentions her. Lucius probably never expected to get such an in-depth description.  
Speechless, he pulls me into a hug.  
And we sit there, hugging, on the floor of the astronomy tower, the stars shining brightly in the velvet blue sky.

"I miss her. I miss the miserable blood-traitor who I once called a sister. I miss the girl who broke my heart." I reveal at last what I swore to keep hidden within the depths of my soul, to keep somewhere where no legilimens could find it. I revealed my most protected, forbidden secret to my best friend. But instead of condemning me, he only held me tighter.

* * *

**Good morning (Very early morning), from Canada.**

**Wow. That was a long break.**  
**I tried writing, I really did. I was away for a week, came home for a day, and then gone again.**  
**I thought I'd have time on that day in between to write something, but the words just wouldn't come. I only managed 200 words in the time span that I can usually write 2000.**  
**Also, I read "My Immortal." It's a lovely story that has been dubbed "The worst Fanfiction ever." It's only funny if you read it outloud with a friend. More if you desire.**  
**But the horrid abuse of the English language in it made it nearly impossible for me to write. Hence the further delay. I had to gain back all the brain cells I lost while reading that story.**  
**Anywho, Hopefully I'll be returning to more frequent updates.**  
**I'm a bit sad that I didn't get a single review while I was gone. Not. Even. One.  
**

**Who caught the Miss Congeniality reference? ("A lady always says 'Yes' not 'Yeah'.)  
**

**-xoxo IWishIWasAWeasley**


	9. Chapter 9

**Today is September 1st. I should be going to Hogwarts right now.**

* * *

_Several Months Ago:_

"Andromeda, you can't do this! Say he was threatening you-anything! I'll vouch for you! Just get rid of that boy! Just marry Rabastan and be safe and close by for the rest of our lives! You _know_ I can't get by without you!" I pleaded.

Andromeda had just told me that she was in love with Ted Tonks, after she kissed him in front of the entire school.

"Cissy I-I can't live without love anymore." My then-sister said.  
"What about us! What about Bella!" I demanded.  
"Bella's gone. She's a Death Eater now." Andromeda responded.  
"What about me!" I wailed.  
"I'm not leaving you, Narcissa!" She insisted.  
"_How can you choose him over us?_"  
"Because our family is WRONG! We _kill_ people, Narcissa! KILL!"  
"Just go Andromeda."  
"Cissy-"  
"I could tell on you!" I shouted.  
"Narcissa!" She pleaded.  
"I said GO! Go and don't ever come back! Don't tell anyone you're leaving or where you're going, just go! Don't ever let them find you! Because I'd rather know that you're out there somewhere, but I'll never see you again over you being dead and no one show up for the funeral! Not even me, because they'd keep me away! Just go!"

Andromeda pulled me into a hug. I struggled at first. I was angry. Hugging was the last thing on my to-do list. Then I realized the truth in my words. Never again would I hug my big sister. So I held on for dear life, one last time.

And that was the last time I ever spoke to my sister Andromeda. That was the last time that I _had_ a sister named Andromeda.

From that point on is a bit of a blur.  
After awhile of me sitting on my bed, staring at the wall, Bellatrix flooed into my fireplace. It had been a running joke between us that one of these days, Bella was going to surprise me by appearing in my fireplace. After Andromeda, Bella forgot about the joke. It's like she's incapable of jokes now.

_"I have big news Cissy!"_ Bella squealed. I never got to hear her announcement though, because suddenly, we heard yelling. Lots of it. Bellatrix's eyes widened in fear.  
"Bella, what's wrong?" I asked, genuinely concerned. Nothing scares my sister.  
"Whoever's yelling, they sound exactly like Rodolphus when he's angry." Bella wispered. I grabbed her hand and we ran downstairs, towards the racket.

Mother, Father and a livid Rabastan are staring at Andromeda.  
We arrived just in time to hear those words:

_"She thinks she loves a mudblood!"_ Rabastan shouted furiously.  
Dead silence.  
No.  
It can't be true.  
"B-but, SHE CAN'T! WHY ARE YOU LYING TO US, RABASTAN!" Bella shrieked, drawing her wand.  
"Bella, no! It's true!" Andromeda shouted.  
"WHAT!" Father bellowed.  
"It's true! I'm in love with Ted Tonks! _I'm going to marry him!"_ Andromeda shot back.  
"Why you little-" Mother pulled out her wand.  
"No!" I shouted. I still love her.  
"_Protego Totalum!_" Andromeda shouted before bolting out the door. We took up the chase.  
Mother shot a crutiatus curse right at the fleeing Andromeda, and barely missed. Protego Totalum doesn't stop the unforgivable.  
"_Protego Horribilis_! Andromeda shrieked, tearing down the driveway away from the house.

Andromeda turned on the spot and just like that, my sister is gone.

Bellatrix collapsed, right there on the driveway. Rather than helping the way he normally would've, the crazed Rabastan Lestrange apparated away right then and there.  
Mother and father stormed into the house, screaming at one another.  
Everyone had forgotten my existence.  
I focused my energy on helping Bellatrix. With my wand, I moved the limp body of my big sister into the house and onto the couch. When Bella came to, she couldn't get up. I felt her forehead, it was burning. Again using my wand, I transferred my sister to her old room and tucked her into bed.

The next day, my parents ambushed me.  
_"You knew! You saw that scum kissing the Mudblood at school and you never told us! You worthless traitor!"_ My mother shrieked, he wand practically touching my nose.  
_"Explain yourself, Narcissa!"_ Father boomed.  
"I-I wanted to! But the traitor, _she threatened me!_ I was afraid for my life! I was going to tell anyway, but I only when Bellatrix was present. Rabastan found out before I could say anything when Bella arrived. You know that family honor is of upmost importance to me, and that I will do my upmost to restore it after the _scum_ has tarnished it!"  
My speech seemed to convince them. It was all lies, but I've always been a fabulous actress.

For the next couple days, I nursed my sister in bed. Her fever didn't get better though. Bellatrix began experiencing terrible stomach pain.

Two days after Andromeda left, our parents came into Bella's room where I was bringing her soup that Ripley had made.  
They looked crazed, the look in their eyes matched that in Rabastans eyes when he announced that Andromeda loved a mudblood.

"Girls!" Mother shrieked. "We have an announcement!"  
"Your mother and I have just returned from the Ministry. We're pleased to inform you that the Scum will tarnish our families reputation no longer! As of 11:47 this morning, the only two Black sisters are Bellatrix and Narcissa. We have cut the blood-traitor from the will. And now, we will prune her from the family tree!" Father bellowed. He then turned to Mother, who summoned a rolled up- rug?  
Mother waved her wand and the object unrolled.  
It was the tapestry. The ancient Black Family Tree. It's been in the family for seven centuries. "Toujours Pur" graced the top in gold lettering. The newest pictures were of Bella, Andromeda and I. Also those of Regulus and Sirius.  
What is Father doing?

In a grand gesture, Father waved his wand, and a shot of fire and light erupted from the end of it, right at Andromeda's small portrait on the tree. In a flash, all that remained was a small, charred hole where my no-longer-sister's face had been.  
Just like that, she was gone.

That night, Bella showed me blood on her bedsheets. She then blurted out her big news from when she had arrived in my fireplace that fateful day.  
Bellatrix was pregnant.  
And she was bleeding.

Bellatrix was rushed to St. Mungo's that day, where she lost her baby. The stress from Andromeda's betrayal and the aftermath had killed Bella's baby. And my big sister, the one who gave up crying at age five, wept bitterly for days. Bella stayed with me at home for a few more days, during which I took care of her, before returning "home" to Rodolphus.

Andromeda will never know the truth. She killed Bella's baby.

* * *

I've never told anyone any of this. No one in the wizarding world outside our family, the Lestranges and the few Healers who were present even knew that Bellatrix was pregnant that first time. Yet here I am, having just told all of it to Lucius.

* * *

**This took longer than usual to write! I worked hard on making sure everything matched up from Blood to Pure. Hope you enjoyed!**


	10. Chapter 10

I expected Lucius to get scared back up a bit after telling him more about my family, but he never did. Our friendship was instead strengthened.

Andromeda never liked him.  
"He's so arrogant! Just because he's a Malfoy. I don't care if the Malfoys are within OUR league of social status, at least we're graceful in our pride." She would always say. "Besides, I think he's trouble."

She never liked him.  
Which initially made me like him more.  
Now we're best friends. And Andromeda helped.

* * *

It's a sunny saturday. We've just had the first giant snowfall of the year. Everyone's starting to wear their cloaks from class to class, due to the drop in temperature in the corridors.  
As I head towards the library, I hear a strange, low sound coming from the door of an empty classroom. I draw my wand and put my ear against the door. Inside, I can hear someone chanting, the same words, over and over again.  
It's none of your business Narcissa.  
Abandoning this thought, I engorgio the keyhole of the door and peek through.  
It's Severus.  
What the Helga is he doing?  
Trusting that I'm safe seeing it's just the little second year, I open the door. Twelve year old Snape's head snaps up.  
"What are you doing Severus?" I question.  
"It's none of your affair, Narcissa. You needn't be concerned with the going-ons of a twelve year old." He replies. Smart kid. I'm smarter.  
"Normally that'd be true Severus, however in your case, I think an exception has been made. Making a present for that little mudblood girlfriend of yours?" I inquire.  
"I'm inventing a spell. It has nothing to do with Lily." Severus admits, trying to steer the conversation away from the young Gryffindor.  
"You're inventing a spell? Severus, you're only twelve." I say.  
"I've already made a few. They're not very useful though. I think I've nearly got this one."

This kid will go far.

* * *

"Lucius?"  
We're sitting in a cupboard off the dungeons corridor, studying. It may look bad, but it's freezing, so we don't care. Smaller rooms stay warmer with body heat.  
"Yeah?" He answers, still focused on his charms essay.  
"When I told you about arranged marriages in my family, you didn't seem to get it. Doesn't your family do the same thing?" It's been bugging me for awhile now.  
Lucius thinks for awhile, then begins-

"My parents were and arranged marriage, and it shows. Talk about miserable. But I've convinced myself over the years that they wont do the same thing to me. I tend to ignore my problems, hoping that they'll solve themselves or go away. I don't usually let myself think about the possibility of my parents selling me off to someone. And it's usually more of a girl thing anyway. To be honest, that's why I started going out with Isabelle. If I'm dating someone I like, my parents can't arrange for me to marry anyone else. But now, I'm confused about Isabelle, and I don't really know what my parents want to do with me. I don't have any older siblings. You do, so you know you're doomed. As for me, I think my parents will let me pick for myself when the time comes."

'So you know you're doomed.' Thanks, bestie. The words make me feel hopeless. Lucius realizes his mistake instantly.

"Aw, dragon dung. I'm sorry Narcissa, that was a jerk move." He puts down hi stack of books and pulls me into a hug.  
If only my best friends hugs could fix everything. If only he could save me from what's to come.

* * *

That evening, I'm still a little mopey. I hadn't thought of my parents marrying me off for quite a while. I guess hearing it from Lucius just hit me somewhere. And he knows it.

"Hey Narcissa."  
"Yes?" I reply, not looking up from my book. We're in Lucius' dorm-since the rest of the dungeons are unbearably cold-sitting on his bed.  
"Are you using the Confundus charm or are you just naturally mind blowing?" He says.  
My head snaps up. Excuse me? His face is dead serious.  
Uh oh.  
"You don't even have to say "Lumos Maxima" to turn me on!" He continues. Then, he cracks. Lucius nearly falls off the bed, he's laughing so hard. Soon, I'm laughing right with him.  
"Y-your face, when I- I said it, priceless.." He gasps between laughs.  
"Lucius Malfoy I hate you! I shriek, still giggling. Now it's my turn.  
"Is that a wand in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?" I say, looking him right in the eye. He immediately looks down and sees that I'm only joking. I'm roaring by now, and Lucius can't help but laugh with me. Ah, boner jokes.  
"What can I say? You're like a bottle of Skele-Gro: You're growing me a bone!" Lucius exclaims, playing along.  
"Interested in making some magic together? My wand is at the ready." He finishes.  
"If I were to look into the Mirror of Erised, I'd see the two of us together." I giggle.  
"I must have had some Felix Felicis, because I think I'm about to get lucky." He winks.  
"Do you want to head to the Shrieking Shack? We could do some shrieking of our own." I laugh.  
"I'd like to get my basilisk into your chamber of secrets."  
"I'm not wearing an invisibility cloak, but do you think I could still visit your restricted section tonight?"  
"One night with me and they'll be calling you MOANING Myrtle!" Lucius roars.

We're killing ourselves laughing by now.  
So dirty.

"If you were a Dementor, I'd become a criminal just to get your kiss." I manage, going for corny.  
"You must be magical, because I've fallen under your spell." Lucius follows my lead.  
"You can have the portkey to my heart!" I exclaim.  
"Going to bed? Mind if I Slytherin?" Lucius winks.

Then we lose it.  
That line is SO old! We can't even move, we're laughing so hard.

_"What the bloody hell are you two talking about?"_  
Our heads snap up.  
Walden Macnair and Evan Rosier, both seventh year Slytherins, just walked into their dormitory. The looks on their faces are just, priceless.  
The ensuing laughing fit between Lucius and I goes on for five minutes and twenty-six seconds. It relapses when Lucius falls off the bed.

Besides, laughter diffuses sexual tension.

* * *

**Just to avoid confusion, Narcissa doesn't like Lucius just because Andromeda didn't like him, that's just one reason why Narcissa started talking to him.  
Chibi-Lill, your review was fantabulous as usual! Thank you!  
**


	11. Chapter 11

**Thanks to RoLouG for being my ONLY reviewer for chapter 10.**

* * *

I'm sitting at breakfast with Tarmac and Vance. The poor boys feel replaced by Lucius. I'll always love them, they stood by me when no one else did. Then, we hear a a swooping of movement overhead.  
"Mail's here." Every mouth at the table recites, automatically.  
A brown barn owl drops a package in Tarmac's porridge.

"It's sinking! Get it!" Vance yells at Tarmac, who merely studies the sinking package before fishing it from his bowl. Tarmac unwraps the porridge covered box and pulls out-  
"A remembrall? Really? I though only first years used those." Vance said cruelly.  
"Shut it, oaf. McGonagall wrote my mother about my forgetfulness, so she sent me this." Tarmac explained, holding the glass sphere up for us to see.  
"Um, Tarmac? The smoke is red." I point out.  
"Dragon dung." He mutters.

* * *

Two weeks later, we're finally home for Christmas Holidays.

That's right! The annual Black Family Christmas Ball! Oh, how festive it will be!  
Not.

My parents are only throwing it for the tabloids, to make it seem like all is well at home. And to give themselves (and me) a sense of normalcy.

Alright Narcissa! Get ready for the worst Christmas ever!

* * *

After greeting guests and curtsying for far too long, nearly everyone has arrived. An army of house-elves (each provided by their masters who're tonight's guests) are preparing enough food to feed the entire Ministry.

After entering our manor, guests walk from the entryway into the entrance hall. There, my family greets them. Or rather, Father greets them, and introduces the rest of us so we can curtsey politely, hardly able to move in our lavish gowns. Bellatrix stands next to Rodolphus. I feel so alone without Andromeda beside me. Something else is off. Traditionally, Father introduces us by saying "And these three beauties are my pride and joy. My daughters, Bellatrix, Andromeda and Narcissa."  
Now, there's no Andromeda to curtsy when her name is called.  
After our introductions, guests enter the ball room, Uncle Orion and Aunt Walburga are there to greet them with Sirius and Regulus. They usually stand side by side. Now, Sirius stands as far from his brother as he can get.

This year sucks.

I look down to admire my dress for the millionth time tonight.  
The bodice with its plunging sweetheart neckline is completely covered in big gold sparkles. The floor-length gold satin skirt isn't too heavy, and it twirls when I dance. I love it. My hair is down and flowing.  
Bellatrix's dress is less fabulous than mine, probably to reflect her less-than-fabulous mood. It's grey, mermaid. The bodice wraps around her torso, and the top layer of the skirt is gathered at her thigh. Big grey flowers adorn the lone strap on her right shoulder, as well as on the skirt. Bella's hair is in a half up-do, and red lipstick graces her lips.

Now that everyone is here, I can go sit down somewhere. I spot Evan alone at a table. We haven't exactly been speaking very often since he hates Lucius. However, it's Christmas and Evan's my cousin. Plus, I don't know where Lucius is. I make my way over and sit in a vacant chair beside my cousin.

"Why aren't you looking for Lucius?" Evan drawls sarcastically.  
"Cut it out Evan, I was looking for you." I reply.  
"Come to spy on me for Dumbledore?" He snarks.  
"Evan, we went over this! I've apologized that you got caught, however the fact remains that you brought it upon yourself. Can we please move on now? It's Christmas. You're my cousin, and right now our family sort of sucks. We need to bind together as many of us as we can or the Pureblood community will fall. Do you _want_ to be enslaved my the mudbloods?" I finish. That should set him straight.  
"Fine. Only if you quite cold-shouldering me though. I helped you out in your time of need. Repay the favor woman." Evan says.  
"Only if you tell me why you didn't let Lucius on the team." I say.  
"Fine. I was just being an ass. He knew how much I liked Isabelle. He doesn't even like her that much, to this day. He just wanted to have someone decent so his parents couldn't pick someone out for him. So he picked Isabelle. Also, I may be better at Quidditch than Lucius, but not by much. You're one of the few who can tell. I didn't want him on the team, because that'd put him in the position to overthrow me as captain. That's why I hid his broom. I was paranoid." Evan confesses.  
So the sod _did_ steal Lucius' broom!  
"Narcissa!" I hear a harsh whisper behind me. I turn to see mother and father waltzing. "Don't be an antisocial! Dance like a proper hostess!" Mother hisses at me.  
"Evan, I need a partner." I turn to my cousin.  
"Fine. But only because Aunt Druella looks about ready to eat you." He replies.

* * *

A few dances later, I can tell Evan would rather not be here. But still, as a close cousin of the Blacks, he's well trained in etiquette and dance. We move together without trouble. Then, I feel a tap on my shoulder. I turn my head to see Lucius.  
"Mind if I cut in?" He asks. He's trying to be polite, with great difficulty.  
"Wouldn't be the first time you steal a girl from me. Have fun Narcissa." Evan says through clenched teeth. He then turns and walks away without another word. Lucius bows and takes my hand.  
This is better. Lucius actually _wants_ to be here. We glide across the floor as one. It's effortless.  
"Doesn't my girl look gorgeous tonight." Lucius smiles. I can't help but smile back. It's a happy moment.  
"You're looking rather dapper yourself sir." I reply playfully. It's true. His all black tux, shirt and tie contrast his pale skin and platinum blond, almost shoulder length hair.  
And we dance happily, my gold dress twirling with me.

* * *

**To see Bellatrix and Narcissa's dresses, visit the link on my profile.**_**  
**_

**Also, I may not update as frequently for awhile, a friend of mine passed away yesterday. Rest in Paradise R.K  
**


	12. Chapter 12

**Woah. It's been a long time friends. I've had writers block after the death of my friend, and then I got loaded with schoolwork. I'm hoping to write more often again though, I've missed it. I put quite a bit of time into this chapter to make up for my long absence :)**  
**Chibi-lil, your reviews, no matter how long or short, never cease to amaze me. I smile every time. Thank you.**

* * *

"What the ruddy hell is Rita Skeeter doing here?" I hiss.  
"She works for the Daily Prophet now. Not very high up, however the reporter assigned to tonight's party fell "mysteriously" ill last minute, so Rita gets to fill in. Be nice, she's writing an article about the entire party and your family." Lucius says.  
"We'll have to keep her far from Bella." I say. Bellatrix and Rita hate each other.

Lucius an I have been dancing for awhile. We move as one, effortlessly; my flowing gold dress sparkling in the light of the many chandeliers.

"Watching those two makes me grateful for being an only child." Lucius comments. I turn in the direction he's looking.

Regulus and Sirius.

"They weren't always that way!" I snap.  
"No need to get defensive." He snarks.  
"Those are my cousins you just insulted!"  
"Okay, you're right, I'm sorry. Can we just enjoy the party now?"  
I know that's the most remorse that you can get out of Lucius. After a lifetime surrounded by Slytherins, I'm used to it. We can be insensitive.  
"It's true though. Sirius was so excited for his little brother to start at Hogwarts. He wanted Regulus to be placed in Gryffindor with him, but Regulus was sorted into Slytherin instead. Sirius still hasn't forgiven him for it." I sigh.  
"Shh, they're fighting. Lets hear what they're saying." Lucius shushes me.

"Sirius, come on! It's Christmas! Why can't you get over it?" Regulus pleads.  
"How did you get sorted into Slytherin?" Sirius demands.  
"If I chose Gryffindor, Mum would kill me!"  
"No she wouldn't! _I survived!_ I already did the hard work of going first! I made it _easy_ for you! Mum would've treated us both better if we were both in Gryffindor! You're just as pathetic as the rest of them! I miss Andromeda!"  
"Sirius! We're not allowed to talk about her!" Regulus hisses, looking over his shoulder for anyone listening.  
"I don't care! She's my cousin and I like her more than anyone here! She's the only thing that made the stupid Christmas Ball bearable! Now I'm stuck with you! Well, from this day forward, we are no longer brothers!" Sirius cries before stomping off.

"That kid is really bitter." Lucius remarks. He then sees my face and changes tactics. "Have you heard the rumor? Your parents are making a big announcement tonight."  
"What announcement?" I question. What the ruddy hell is he on about? I haven't heard anything about a big announcement.  
"No idea. But they invited the press. It must be important if they let Skeeter in here." He says.  
I hope he heard wrong. I've had enough excitement in my life this year.

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen! Your attention if you'd please!" The entire room looks up from their dancing. Father is making a speech on the small, round stage in the center of the room. "Good evening friends, we of the Black family are so pleased to have all of you present for our little get together during this holiday season." Bullcrap. Whatever.  
Father drones on about Purebloods for awhile, then, Mother ascends the two stairs up to the stage.  
"And now, dear guests, my wife, Druella and I, along with our dear friends, the Malfoy family, have an announcement."  
Wait, what?  
Lucius and I share a confused, almost frightened look.  
"We are delighted to announce the engagement of our children, Lucius Malfoy and Narcissa Black!"

What kind of joke is this?  
That's all it is, a weird, sick joke.

The crowd lets out a collective gasp, then erupts into murmurs and whispers, like "That'll never last!" "They're still in school." and "She's not even of age yet!"

Suddenly, Bellatrix is beside me. "_What are you two doing?_ They want you onstage! Go with it! _Just pretend!_ We'll sort this out later!" She hisses before pushing us towards the center of the room.

Bella's voice has brought me back to my senses. I can't say the same for Lucius, who still looks lost. I take his hand and climb onto the stage. The murmers and troubled glances are swiftly traded for false smiles and too-loud applause.  
I smile politely at the crowd. I'm a born actress, I know I'm doing a very convincing job of looking happy. It's a good thing we Blacks are born with a survival instinct, Lucius is absolutely clueless on what to do.

_"Smile."_ I hiss between my smiling teeth. "We'll sort this out later."  
I link my arm in his. He relaxes at my touch.  
After a tremendous amount of effort, my best friend manages a smile.

I mean, it's not like this is really happening anyway.  
Just a sick joke.  
Just a sick joke.


	13. Chapter 13

As soon as the last guest was out the door at the end of the ball, Lucius whirls around to face me.  
"Did you know about this?" He asks.  
"Lucius, I'm 16. This is the last thing I ever expected. I had no idea. You were the one who knew about the 'Big announcement.'"  
Lucius runs his hands over his face. "The front page of tomorrow's prophet is going to say that we're getting _married_." He moans. At the thought of that, my legs give up. I collapse into a chair and stare at the wall.  
What do we do?

* * *

"There you two are! What are you lot hiding for? If you want to get to the bottom of this, come with me. _Now._" Bellatrix appears in the doorway and marches right back out again. I was hoping for a bit of sisterly comfort.  
How stupid of me.

Lucius and I follow Bellatrix to our waiting parents. My parent's, his father, Bella and Rodolphus are all present.  
"Sit, children." Mother commands. I don't need to be told twice. Lucius however, doesn't appreciate being called a child. He lingers, but catches my warning glare and sits in the chair beside me.  
"Well. What do you two think?" Father beams at Lucius and I. I want to throw Ripley, our house elf, at him right now. So much.  
"Father. I'm sixteen." I say bluntly, staring at my parents.  
"So a long engagement it will be! I don't see an issue here." Father replies, still faking happy.  
"Is this even _legal?"_ I blurt out.  
"It is perfectly legal Narcissa. So what's really troubling you about this situation? You and Lucius get along rather well, do you not?" Mother snips.  
"That doesn't mean we should get _married!"_ I groan.  
"Is there perhaps, someone else?" Mother inquires.

So that's it.

The reason they couldn't wait.

They're afraid I'm going to run off like Andromeda.

Anger.

"No, there isn't anyone else, so will everyone _stop_ comparing me to the traitorous little_ scum_! I'm not her and I_ never will be!"_ I shout, rising from my chair. I then stomp out without a glance back.  
I'll be in trouble later, for sure. I can't even remember the last time I've lost my cool. Especially around company. I'm just so sick of being looked at as "Andromeda-waiting-to-happen."

Calm down Narcissa. Attitude will get you nowhere in life.

"I'm not sure if I've ever seen you throw a fit before." A deep, familiar voice drawls from the doorway. I turn around and sure enough, Lucius is leaning against the door frame.  
"I learned when I was very young that sadness and anger don't get you very far in life." I state.  
"Don't I know it." Lucius sighs. We stand in silence for a while.

"What are we going to do?" I ask. I see no way out of this mess. Are we trapped?  
"Lets go for a walk." Lucius says. He holds the backdoor open for me.

* * *

"I honestly have no idea where to start. I never saw this coming." Lucius says as we walk.  
"Lets try to wrap our heads around the problem first." I say.  
"We're best friends and our parents have decided that we're getting married. They just announced it to the entire world without telling us." Lucius states.  
That sums it up well.  
"Alright. So why do we think that this is a bad thing?" I ask.  
"I had convinced myself that I would be allowed to chose my own wife when the time came." Lucius starts.  
"I'm _sixteen_." I continue.  
"We're best friends, _not_ lovers."  
"Forcing teenagers to get married _should_ be illegal."  
"You still have another year and a half of school."  
"And my parents are only doing this to make sure I don't run off with a mudblood, because they, along with _everyone else_ in the world _still_ think I'm bloody _Andromeda!"_ I finish.  
"I don't." He says simply.  
And we walk in silence.

"So, what are we going to do?" My best friend asks finally.  
"We need to talk to our parents again." I say.  
"They'll yell."  
"It'll be worth it if we can get out of this."  
"You're right." He says before pulling me into a hug.  
His hugs make me feel like all the worries in the world a little smaller.

* * *

We end up in front of the house.

"I think you guys should go home when we talk to our parents. There'll be too much faking if we do it together." I offer.  
"Faking?" Lucius questions.  
"You know; my parents and your father will be trying to impress one another, so we wont get anything accomplished. Speaking of which, where's your mum? I never even saw her at the party." I explain.  
"Oh. Um she ah, she's tired, ya know. Father makes all of the decisions anyway."  
"Well, either way, I need to talk to my parents by myself."  
"Um, why don't we just do it together?" Lucius asks.  
"I just explained the faking thing. It'll be more affective if we talk to our parents separately." I say.  
"Can't we just do it together?"  
"Lucius, are you listening to anything I'm saying?"  
"Just forget it then!"  
"Why are you making such a big deal out of this?"  
"I'm going home."  
"Lucius-"

But he's gone. Apparated away, because that's how I always get abandoned. Andromeda, Lucius, they both apparated from the same spot.  
Quite being ridikulus Narcissa. Lucius went home like you told him too. Don't be dramatic.  
I bring out my poker-face and head back into the house.

"Mr. Malfoy left after you ran out like a child." Mother snaps when I enter the house.  
"Lucius just left also." I reply, ignoring the child comment.  
"You've shamed us in front of the Malfoys, girl." Father jumps in.  
"You _should_ be ashamed, you've married off your _sixteen_ year old daughter!" I shout.  
"How dare you raise you voice at-" Mother starts.  
"Oh, cut the crap! There's no one around to impress! _Why are you doing this to me?"_ I cry.  
"This is for your own good, child. People will no longer question your place in our society." Father answers.  
"I don't need to marry a man who I don't love for that!" I cry.  
"Narcissa, this conversation is over." Mother cuts in.  
"But-"  
"You will marry Lucius Malfoy or be exiled. That is final. If you are truly loyal and truly a Black, you will do what is best for you." She finishes.

We're trapped.

* * *

**Thanks to all of my great reviewers!**


	14. Chapter 14

Andromeda never realized what consequences her betrayal would have for Bella, have for me.  
Things get worse when I return to Hogwarts.

* * *

It's been a first day back of complete misery. Between the stares, whispers and pointing fingers (not to mention the evil glares from the other Slytherin girls) I am not in the best mood by lunch. To top everything off, I haven't seen Lucius once today. Does he not eat? Is that sod trying to avoid me? _Why would he do that?_ That's the _worst_ possible thing he could do right now!

Suddenly, at the lunch table, seventh years Miranda Geis and Petina Knack sit down on opposite sides of me.  
"Narcissa, where's Lucius?" Miranda asks in a loud whisper.  
"I don't know. I haven't seen him all day." I answer.  
"Wait, so you don't know where he is?" Miranda questions.  
"I've no idea. Why? I thought one of you might know."  
"Narcissa, no one's seen him at all. He wasn't on the train yesterday either. We thought you'd know where he is since he's definitely not at school." Petina jumps in.

Well shit.

* * *

Two days later. Still no Lucius. I'm still worried.  
I've hardly said anything to anyone since my chat with Miranda and Petina. Human interaction is the last thing on my mind right now.

Where is he?

I haven't spoken to Tarmac and Vance since returning from holidays, so when I see them in the common room, I walk right over.

"Hi boys." I sigh.  
"Can we help you?" Tarmac says coldly, not looking up from his book.  
"Umm, pardon?" What does _that_ mean?  
"Look Narcissa, you can't just blow us off for Lucius for half a year and then come running back when he doesn't show up for school." Vance says.  
"But- I-"  
"And another thing, you told us there was nothing going on like that between the two of you, and now you're getting married? You a liar Narcissa, and stupid. You can't get married at sixteen, especially not to _him_." Vance continues.  
"Guys!"  
"We were there for you when no one else was, back when you were a nobody potential blood-traitor. So you ran off with Malfoy to repay us. Forget it Narcissa, we can't let you use us." Tarmac says.  
They won't look me in the eyes.  
I pick up what's left of my dignity and strut away.

* * *

I don't know how I end up in the library, but I do. And there, I come across the last person I'd expect to find with his nose in a book.  
Evan Rosier.  
Ah, dear cousin.  
I sit down across from him.

"Can't find Lover-boy Lucius so you scope out your favorite cousin?" He drawls sarcastically, still reading his book.  
"Give me a break Evan, Tarmac and Vance have already given me the boot." I plead.  
"I'm just bugging. Except the favorite cousin part. We both know that's true." he replies, smirking.  
"Yeah, yeah. So what's the deal with you reading? You don't read. Ever."  
"Researching the trademark policies on spells."  
"Say-what?" I ask, confused.

Evan looks around the room-empty-and leans across the table.  
"You know how little Severus dabbles around with inventing spells?" He whispers.  
"Yeah?"  
"Well, he just came up with a gooder." Evan smiles.  
"Go on..."  
"It's called '_Levicorpus_.' It causes a victim to be hoisted into the air and dangle upside-down. He's only a second year, so I made a few adjustments for myself. I'm going to try it out tomorrow."  
"Wait, so you and Severus came up with a spell together?"  
"Not exactly... He came up with it, I just convinced him to teach it to me, then I made a few adjustments."  
"Does he know this?"  
"Nope. He doesn't know that I'm going to publicly embarrass Lyle Bobbins from Gryffindor with it."  
_"Are you stealing his spell?"_ I question.  
"It sounds bad if you put it that way..."  
"Evan!"  
"What? He's just a second year! Don't tell me you've gone _soft_ Narcissa. I had faith in your sanity, of all people."  
"Of course not. Do what you want. I want no part in this though."  
"Yeah, yeah. Just be glad that Lover-boy Lucius isn't here, or it would've been him." Evan scowls.  
"Lay one finger on Lucius and I will end you, favorite cousin or not." I snap.  
"So protective of him, yet he wont even show his face at school after the prophet printed that he was marrying you." Evan says lightly.

Oh. No. He. Did. NOT.

Forget wands, I just up and slap my dear cousin in the face.  
"Merlin Narcissa! Uncalled for!"  
_"And your bloody comment was?"_  
"Hit a nerve did I? Whatever. He'll never change Narcissa, so you'd best get used to the sod." Evan snaps, holding his cheek.  
And I strut away from yet another person who means the world to me.

* * *

"I can't believe he actually did it."

I'm currently chatting with Miranda Gies, watching as Evan entertains a growing crowd of students with "his" newly invented jinx. The Griffyndor Lyle Bobbins is currently dangling, upside-down in the air, arms flailing madly. Madeleine Graves is yelling at Evan with tears in her eyes. "Put him down! Let him go, Rosier!"  
"Shut it Graves, unless you want to join the pathetic Mudblood." Evan dismisses the fellow seventh year.  
Suddenly, the crowd parts, and another student emerges.  
Amelia Bones, seventh year Ravenclaw, is standing before Evan, wand out.  
"Alright Rosier, you've had your fun. Now put Bobbins down, if you would." She says sternly.  
"As if. Go hide in the library, Bones."  
"Professor Dumbledore's a busy man, Rosier. I can't imagine he'd be very pleased if he had to be called out of his study to deal with the likes of you." Amelia replies, her face hard and determined.  
"Become a snitch, have you Bones? No wonder you Ravenclaws can't win the Quidditch cup, you're the snitch, not the player! Which of you is a bludger?" Evan retorts.  
"Rosier, just put the lad down and get on with your miserable day."  
"Hm. Let me think, nope." Evan drawls sarcastically.  
"He hasn't done anything to you, Rosier."  
"His filthy blood is offensive, Bones. Aren't you supposed to be smart?"  
"Your blood is no better than his, Rosier! Your pureblood fantasy is a load of rubbish!" Amelia snaps.

The crowd falls silent.

A spell erupts from Evan's wand, but Amelia's skills are far superior. She blocks the spell with nearly no effort. This anger Evan. He throws jinx, after curse, after hex, yet Amelia Bones hardly flinches as she blocks each one with ease. All the while not casting a single harmful spell herself.

Suddenly, Lyle Bobbins falls from midair and hits the ground. Everyone is startled.  
Amelia seizes the opportunity.  
With the flick of her wand, Evans is disarmed, and his wand soars through the air into the waiting palm of Amelia Bones. She stands, triumphant, and the crowd gives a cheer.

* * *

**A bit longer than usual for my lovely readers :)**  
**Thank you kindly for your awesome reviews!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Track: Walk The Moon - Tightrope**

* * *

I look to my right. A small, red-haired girl is watching Amelia in awe. I think I've seen her with Sirius a few times. What's her name again? She looks about twelve, so she's probably in second year. Evans!  
The girl suddenly bolts from her place beyond the crowd and circles the mass to a nearby tree. She then pulls someone by the arm and continues running towards the castle.  
Severus.  
What was Snape doing behind the tree?

* * *

"Well, at least Evan didn't start shouting unforgivables at Bones, he'll be in enough trouble as is." Miranda comments, bringing me out of my thoughts.  
"The last thing our house needs is _another_ expulsion." I agree, thinking about Rabastan and Theo Urqheart fetting expelled last year.

We've made our way back to the common room.  
The door slides open, and Petina rushes out at us. "I've been looking for you two! Come on!" She snaps, grabbing my and Miranda's arms and heading out of the dungeons towards the gates.

"Petina, where are we going?" Miranda asks, breaking her arm free. I do the same.  
"Shh, not here. It's not safe. Just trust me." Petina whispers before turning and continuing on course.  
I don't know about her, but I don't trust anyone in Slytherin except Lucius. Maybe Tarmac and Vance. But still, you have to trust_ someone_ in this wizarding world.

"Petina, if we go out the Hogwarts gates we wont be able to get back onto the grounds." Miranda states.  
"I know, we have a route back. It's all layed out, don't worry. We have to apparate to the meeting place, thank goodness I passed my test." Petina says.  
"Hmph." Miranda huffs. She failed her apparation test drastically.

"Take an arm, we're already late." Petina says, holding an arm out to each of us. Miranda and I each grasp an arm, and we disappear into nothingness.

* * *

We appear on the outskirts of Hogsmead, near the Shrieking Shack. Petina looks over her shoulder once, then proceeds through an opening in a falling-over fence. Miranda and I follow.  
We make our way down the rocky hillside. We walk for several minutes, until we're around the side of the hill. We can't see Hogsmead anymore, only the ominous Shrieking Shack.

Suddenly, Petina comes to a stop in front of the rocky hillside. Miranda and I share a look. It's just the rocky side of the hill...  
Then, Petina picks up a small rock and chucks it at the large stone in front of us.

Okay...

A hole appears in the stone on the hillside where the rock hit it, and an eye appears in the hole.

"Merlin's sake, come closer fools!" A deep voice says.  
We all move closer to the eye in the rock.

"Names?" The voice demands.

"Petina Knack, bringing Narcissa Malfoy to HIM as instructed." Petina says to the eye.

"Wait, what! What's going on?" I snap.

"Petina Knack, what password were you given upon departing?" The eye says, ignoring me.  
"Magic is Might." Petina answers.  
"Who's the other one?" The eye questions harshly, looking at Miranda.  
"Miranda Gies, as discussed." Petina answered.  
_"What is going on Petina?"_ I demand.  
"Shh. Wait until we're inside. It's about Lucius, so you'll want to come.  
Lucius? Merlin, what's he done now?  
"Wands?" The eye speaks. Miranda holds her wand up to the eye, who studies it. Then I to, bring my wand level with the eye in the stone. Then, without warning, the eye disappears and the stone opens like a sliding door. A blond man is standing before us. I recognize him- Avery. It was his eye in the hole. That's who was talking to us. He turns around and heads down a hallway, and Petina follows. Miranda and I exchange a look, and then follow. The stone slides shut behind us.

We follow a dark, narrow hallway until it gives way to a large, round dark room. We seem to be in some sort of cave. The walls are lined with past and current Slytherin student's. The center of the room is empty, almost like a stage, save one figure in a tall chair.  
He was handsome once, he embodies the term "forgotten good looks." It's as though his features have been burned and blurred; they're waxy and oddly distorted, and the whites of the eyes have a permanently bloody look. He's wearing a long black cloak, and his face is as pale as the full moon.

Lord Voldemort.

Out of nowhere, Bellatrix appears in front of me.  
"Cissy! It's about time dear, the Dark Lord has been waiting!" She says quietly during a brief hug. She puts her hand on my back and brings me forward, into the center of the room, and stops before Voldemort.  
"My Lord." Bella says, bowing low. "I present my sister, Narcissa Black, fiancee of Lucius Malfoy."  
_"Curtsy."_ Bella mumbles harshly so only I can hear. I curtsy politely to Lord Voldemort.  
"Such manners you Blacks have. Your parents have raised you well, I see." Voldemort says. Bellatrix nearly squeals in delight. Her eyes are shining.  
"Now-" Voldemort continues. "You are engaged to Lucius Malfoy, correct?"  
"Yes. My Lord." I quickly add.  
"Then you of all people would know his whereabouts. Tell me girl, do you know where your fiancee is, seeing he has been reportedly absent from school?"  
"No my Lord, I do not know. I haven't seen nor heard from him since Christmas." I answer truthfully. It looks like Voldemort is about to say something, when a voice interrupts him.  
"_She's probably lying!_ She can't be trusted, just like her blood-traitor sister!" The whole room turns to look at Patricia Eaton. You're not in Hogwarts anymore Patricia, cut the childish drama. Honestly.  
Bella's wand is out, she's about to shout something, but I shush her.  
"Excuse me Patricia, but are you _accusing_ Bellatrix of being a blood-traitor?" I demand, eyebrow raised.  
"No, I am referring to your _other_ sis-" Patricia starts. Oh, she is not going to finish that sentence.  
"I have _one _sister. ONE. And she's standing right beside me, before the Dark Lord. Do you really believe that you can pick out those who are untrustworthy better than he?" I ask.  
"N-no. That's not what I-"  
"Then please, do not interrupt the Dark Lord when he speaks!" I finish harshly, before turning back to Voldemort.  
"Look at me girl." He commands. I obey and look into Voldemort's bloodshot eyes. I feel a strange, swooping sensation in my head.  
"She speaks the truth." Voldemort announces. The whole room glares at Patricia.

* * *

**Note: The swooping sensation was Legilimency :)**


	16. Chapter 16

"Now, can anyone tell me why Miss Black was uninformed of this meeting?" Lord Voldemort asks the room-full of Slytherins.  
No one answers.  
"WELL?" Voldemort yells, impatient.  
"Your Lordship, Recto Jugson had been assigned the task of telling Miranda and Narcissa, however he received detention and couldn't reach them. Nor could he attend the meeting." Walden Macnair squeaks. He must be scared, Walden never squeaks.  
"So where were you two?" Voldemort asks me.  
"We were watching Evan jinxing a Gryffindor My Lord." I answered.  
"Evan was the distraction that enabled the rest to sneak off grounds." Bella piped up.  
"Yes indeed, Rosier completed his task, however letting that blood-traitor get the best of him does cast a shadow over his success." Voldemort commented.  
"I would've had her my Lord, but the mudblood, Bobbins fell. I never let him down." Evan says.  
"Are you suggesting that someone else knew the counter-curse?"  
"Er- no sir. My spell must need more work." Why are Evan's eyes so blank?  
"Very well." Voldemort finishes.

Hold up. Someone let Lyle Bobbins down? Only one other person knows the counter-curse.

Severus Snape.

* * *

I'm now sitting next to Bella, who's sitting directly on Voldemort's right. Voldemort has been talking-for a very long time-about this "mission" of his to cleanse the world of barbaric mudbloods. Everyone else is drinking up his words like water in the desert. I however, have heard the anti-muggle speech more times than I can count from my "cheerful" relatives. Voldemort's speech is nothing new. I do try to be attentive though, because this guy is creepy. I mean, I'm in Slytherin. I've grown up around plenty of creepy blokes. But Tom Riddle-or what's left of him-trumps them all. So a touch of fear makes me sit up a little straighter.  
So, Voldemort gathered us all here to find possible future recruits for his "Death Eaters." He's taken a special interest in Lucius, which is why he wanted to know where Lucius is. Now it's more than just a _touch_ of fear.

* * *

That night, everyone's snuck back into the castle through a secret passage in the dungeons. I return to my dormitory to find an unfortunate situation:  
My dormmates.

Iris Kwaad,  
Bridget Bulstrode  
and Athena Gibbon.

Bitch, Bitcher and Bitchiest.

Iris looks away when I enter the room. Bridget however, stand straight up and faces me.

"We heard about what you said today."  
I ignore her, and make my way to my trunk.  
"Where's your sex-buddy Narcissa?" Athena pipes up.  
_"Excuse you?"_ I reply, revolted. _That's_ just, no.  
"Why wont lover-boy Lucius show his face, hmm? You announce this 'engagement' and he's ashamed to be seen in public. Curious." Athena continues.  
"He left you at Christmas? How sad." Bridget says.  
I don't reply. I don't know what I'd say.  
"You probably shagged him after that poor excuse for a party." Athena states.  
"Yeah, no." I reply.  
"And he got what he wanted. You're no use to him now." Bridget smiles meanly.  
"That is definite rubbish." I state.

"Well then, I guess he just had second thoughts." Athena says lightly.  
"He's ashamed to be 'engaged' to a little sixth year. He's probably at home, plotting ways to back out." Bridget continues harshly.  
"He wont even send you a letter. He must be _really_ revolted." Athena says.  
"Maybe, he transferred to Durmstrang just to get away from you!" Bridget cries.  
"He's willing to put up with the cold just to avoid you!" Athena says.  
"And you weren't even worth the time it takes for him to tell you that he was leaving you!" Bridget finishes.

And they've done it. Hit the nail on the head. Spoken my secret fears, out loud for the world (or at least the four of us) to hear. I wont let them know that though.

"Hey, how come you three had to 'hear' about Lucius? You _actually_ didn't get invited to see the Dark Lord?" I ask with mock surprise.  
Silence.  
Oh, I've got them now.  
"Blimey. Even _Jugson_ got invited! You three _must_ be useless and unwanted if Jugson gets invited and you don't!" I laugh. I turn on my heel and strut from the room before anyone can say another word.

* * *

"You have a positive affect on me. I don't want to hurt people. I'm not angry anymore."  
Lucius' words ring in my ears as I sprint from the dungeons.  
Must. Get. Away.

I remember when he said those words. We were in the Astronomy Tower before Christmas break, bundled up in blankets to fight the cold. He'd been in a much better mood since school began. Since our fingers had become too cold to hold a book, we talked instead. Having noticed his good mood lately, I finally asked him the question that had been on my mind for awhile:  
"Lucius, do you want to be a Death Eater?"  
There. It's out. I couldn't take it back.  
He was silent for awhile, but not an angry silent.  
"When I was younger, it was just the 'cool' thing to aspire to. To say you wanted to be a Death Eater gained you acceptance. None of us really understood what it meant, to follow the Dark Lord." Lucius started. "When we finally figured it out, I pretended that being a Death Eater was the best idea in the world. After awhile, my act became more than that. I was so angry, all the time. Eventually I was convinced that mudbloods were the reason for the worlds problems. I took my anger out on them. I was everything a Death Eater should be."  
Slytherin house is filled with bitchy girls and angry boys.  
We don't start out that way, we adapt to survive.

But what made Lucius so angry?  
"It doesn't matter." Was what he said when I asked him. "Because you, my best friend, have a positive affect on me. I don't want to hurt people. I'm not angry anymore."

Back in the present, I can't stop questioning whether or not I knew my best friend at all. Did he mean what he said? What reason would he have to lie? What secrets has Lucius been keeping from me?  
I think back to when we found out that Isabelle had run away:

_"Families that look perfect on the outside can be anything but." I said sadly, thinking of my own shattered home._  
_"Don't I know it." Lucius huffed._  
_"What's that supposed to mean?" I questioned._  
_"Nothing." He replied._

Then he changed the subject.

Best friend or not, one thing I _do_ know for sure is that Lucius has been keeping things from me. And the time has come that I learn _what_.  
I have to find out what's happened to my best friend.


	17. Chapter 17

It's morning.  
I haven't slept.  
I have class today.  
I don't care.

We were in that stupid Death Eater gathering until the wee hours. It took forever to sneak back into Hogwarts on foot without being detected. By the time I reach Malfoy Manor, it'll be acceptable visiting hours.

After much running, I've reached the Hogwarts gates.  
I haven't passed my test yet, but I'm perfectly competent at apparation. By the time I'm seventeen, I'll be better than Bellatrix. I've always been the most graceful of my sisters. Even at Floo Powder.  
My thoughts shift and focus solely on Malfoy Manor as I turn on the spot and disappear.

* * *

The large, gloomy estate is looming over me. I however, am accustomed to such gloom. My house is about as ominous, although not as tall as the towering home before me.  
However, my house has tighter security. I face no opposition as I walk up the driveway. I can see Lucius' window from here.  
I can see that his light is on in the shadow of the tall estate. I know I've come to the right place.

I should be headed to class right now.  
Who cares?

I reach the door, and pull the giant, ornate door-knocker.  
It's a snake. Slytherin through and through, the Malfoys. I knock on the door.

Nothing.

What if everyone is right? What if the thought of marrying revolted Lucius enough to hide in his house for the rest of his life? That'd explain why no one's answering the door.

I'll show him. I'm not a pathetic, dependent little girl.

I'll just show up late today, if at all. It's not like the teachers will punish me.

Screw you, Lucius.

* * *

I have to apparate to Hogsmeade and walk in through the secret passageway. Hogwarts is enchanted, I wouldn't be able to find it even if I apparated to the front gate.

I finally arrive in my dormitory and collapse in my bed, giving in to the exhaustion pulling at my eyelids.

* * *

I'm reading in the common room. My roommates just walked in and gave me the most evil smiles I've ever seen. I don't know what they're up to, but I'm not going into that dormitory until absolutely necessary.

While Tarmac and Vance are still being toe-rags, I'm still in the good books of the seventh years. I spend all of my free time with them over the next couple days.  
I don't dare ask one of them if they've heard from Lucius: that'd be showing weakness.  
As long as I ignore the whispers about Lucius, I manage.

Evan hasn't been in this good of a mood since school started. He's one person who doesn't miss Lucius.

I don't know how much longer I can take this.

* * *

The following morning's breakfast begins as it should. I hear the usual flutter above my head of the owls delivering the morning post. Letters, parcels from home and copies of the Daily Prophet drop from above all around me. It seems as though everyone gets the prophet these days. Everyone wants to make sure their loved ones are safe.  
I pluck a danish from the stack of them at the center of the long table and begin nibbling at it.  
I've been so stressed lately that my appetite has seemingly grown wings and flown away.

I'm lost in thought, so I take awhile to realize that everyone is whispering and looking.  
At me.  
What is it _now?_

"Oh for Merlin's sake! _Will someone pass her a prophet already?_" Petina, sitting beside me, snapped. Walden Macnair dutifully hands her today's paper. Petina hands it to me, and I look down at the front page and stop.

_**Pureblooded Bliss Not As It Seems?**_  
_Doubts circle about the recent engagement of Lucius Malfoy and Narcissa Black._  
_By Rita Skeeter_

_We all remember too well of the shocking and to some "outrageous" announcement of the Malfoy heir to the underage youngest Black daughter back in December at the Black Annual Christmas Ball, this year including a noticeably absent Andromeda Black. Guests left the event scratching their heads, wondering how our praised pureblood society had come to THIS. The less-than proficient age of the couple opens many questions. The most important being:  
Whose idea is this?  
If it's the couples idea then how did mum and dad ever agree to such a ridiculous plan?_ _Or was it the parent's idea all along?_

_New information suggests the latter._  
_According to several close sources, Lucius Malfoy has yet to return to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from Christmas holidays._

_"Narcissa's been a mess. She claims not to have heard from him since Christmas. He seems to have up and left her. It's a strange situation, no one knew they were together before the big announcement at Christmas. We asked, but they always denied it. One can't help but wonder." A source from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry said yesterday._

___So why hasn't the heir of the Malfoy fortune been reported missing?_  
_Could he be hiding from the world that can't help but whisper about his too-young engagement?_  
_Is all not as happy as it seemed when the just-engaged couple stood in the center of the crowd at the Black Estate on Christmas Eve?_  
_The Groom-to-Be's recent behavior suggests as so._

The evil smiles from my roommates replays in my mind.  
That's what they were up to; they were contacting Rita Skeeter.  
Oh, hell no!

I rise and gracefully hurry from the Great Hall, without even a glance at anyone in the room.

* * *

Here I am, yet again at the end of Lucius' ridiculously long driveway, the massive house towering over me.  
It's raining.  
I hurry to the door and knock.

Nothing.  
Again.  
I'm not leaving without answers this time. The rolled up Prophet in my hand reminds me of that.

Where's Tobias, their house-elf?  
I open the door, but just a crack.  
I hear a loud bang over the sound of falling rain.  
Lots of loud bangs.  
Is that, shouting?

Narssica, do _not_ open the door. Do _not_ waltz into someone else's home. I've read plenty of books in which people do that, and it irritates me to no end. They're so stupid! They just walk into an obviously dangerous house uninvited and get into heaps of trouble for it!  
But, this isn't dangerous. I mean, it's Lucius.  
However, I'll have disgraced my family if I enter the Malfoy home uninvited. I should just return to school, say I overslept and come back another day.

As if.  
I've come too far, and I need answers.  
And my hair is getting wet.

Entering prestigious homes uninvited, that's for the stupid.  
I must be dumber than Jugson then, because here I go.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 17 didn't get a single review. Not one.**

* * *

The raucous is getting louder as I make my way up the staircase of Malfoy Manor.  
Should I call out, make my presence known? Fear keeps me mute.  
The hallway turns and Tobias, the ancient house elf, is before me.

"Miss Narcissa, how did you get inside the house?" He wheezes. From the sounds of him, that elf is going to drop dead any day now.  
"Um, through the front door?" I say sarcastically. "Which by the way, you failed to answer."  
"Tobias was hoping that the visitor would assume that no one was home and leave, Miss Narcissa."  
_"Why?"_ This is getting weirder.  
_"Miss Narcissa must leave at once."_ Tobias wheezes.  
"I will _not_ be ordered around by a house-elf." I snap.  
"No, please Miss, for your own good, _you must."_  
"Move, elf. I'm here to see Lucius."

I step past him, and Tobias follows me down the hallway, quietly pleading behind me for me to leave.  
I reach the door at the end of the hall. Ignoring Tobias' desperate pleas, I push it open.  
I am on the balcony overlooking the Malfoy's parlor.  
The scene on the floor below me turns my blood cold.  
Lucius, writhing on the floor;  
His father, Abraxas, standing over him.  
_"Crucio!"_ Abraxas yells again. Lucius howls in pain.

_"For the last time, boy, you'll do it!"_ Abraxas yells.  
"I have a choice! _Narcissa and I have a choice!"_ Lucius cries.  
"No. You. Don't!" Abraxas hollers. He points his wand and Lucius wails in pain.  
His yells are getting quieter, less sharp. They've been at this for awhile.  
"Say yes!" Abraxas yells.  
"N-never!" Lucius pants.  
More writhing, more pain, more groaning. He's too weak to cry out.

They say it hurts more to see a loved one in pain than it does to be in pain yourself. I thought that was bogus until now.  
I've never been in more pain in my life.

I have my fist in my mouth to keep from crying out.

What do I do?

I should save him.  
I _want_ to save him, but growing up around oftenly dangerous people has taught me to survey the situation first.

Before I can properly take in my surroundings however, Abraxas withdraws his wand. He turns away, leaving his son lifeless on the floor.  
"I'm going out, but I wont be long, so don't bother trying to escape." He calls over his shoulder as he turns on the spot and disappears.

* * *

I can't even move. My mind doesn't work, like it's been confunded.  
Lucius groans, and I snap out of my petrified trance.  
I descend the spiral staircase to my left and cautiously approach the curled up body of the boy who I call my best friend.  
I want to touch him, but he doesn't know I'm here yet. He'd think I'm Abraxas. I walk around his broken form so I'm standing in front of him, still in my school robes. I lay on the floor on my stomach and face him. All those doubts that arose during Lucius' absence no longer matter. Right now, all that matters is him.  
"Lucius?" I whisper. His eyes open. It takes him a second to focus, to see me, even though I'm right in front of him. Recognition dawns in his eyes.  
"N-Nar-" He struggles to speak, his voice broken and raspy.  
"Shh. No talking. I'm taking you out of here." I whisper soothingly.

"Elf!" I snap as I rise from the floor.  
"Yes Miss Narcissa?" Tobias wheezes.  
"As Master Lucius' fiancee, you will listen to me." I command. "Go get us a room in the Hogs Head in Hogsmead. The barman wont recognize you. Do not reveal who the room is for. Return here when you are finished."  
With a low bow, Tobias is gone.

* * *

When Tobias returns, I have him apparate the three of us to the room in Hogsmeade. I don't trust my sixteen-year-old self to apparate a very weak Lucius when elf magic is much more powerful.

This place is gross.  
The room resembles the rest of the Hogs Head: shabby, grungy and dimly lit. At least no one will ever expect the Malfoy heir and the youngest Black heiress to hide out here.

There's only one bed.  
Stupid elf.

I help Lucius over to it and he falls onto the mattress, instantly asleep.

* * *

How does one take care of a seventeen-year-old boy who's been tortured by his own father for not wanting to marry them?  
After Lucius fell asleep the only way I could really help him was taking off his shoes and pulling the shabby quilts over him.  
After sending Tobias home to his master, I realized that I had nothing to do while Lucius sleeps. So I settled into the tattered armchair and watched him, listening to the dull thud of the rain on the roof.

_"Families that look perfect on the outside can be anything but." I reply sadly, thinking of my own shattered home._  
_"Don't I know it." Lucius huffs._  
_"What's that supposed to mean?"_  
_"Nothing."_

That conversation in the astronomy tower rings in my head. "Nothing." He said. I should've known it wasn't _nothing_. His perfect pureblood daddy's been crucioing him for who knows how long. And his socialite mother-  
Wait, where is Mrs. Malfoy?  
She wasn't at the Christmas Ball and I didn't see her in the house. I haven't heard a thing about her in a long time. I'll ask when he wakes up.

When I look at Lucius sleeping before me, I don't see a man who's been tortured by his father for who knows how long because he wouldn't agree to a forced marriage. I don't see the arrogant Malfoy heir.  
I see Lucius. I see him grinning like a maniac after completing a nose-dive on his broom. I see him laughing with Evan, back when they were best friends. I see him being weirded out by an adoring Professor Slughorn during a Slug Club dinner party. I see him reading in the astronomy tower, his brow wrinkled in concentration. No one else has ever seen that.

When I look at Lucius, I see my best friend.


	19. Chapter 19

Family.

When the world knocks you down, who'll always be there to pick you up?  
Family.  
Who always sees you at your worst and still thinks you're the best?  
Family.  
The people who are proud of you when you succeed and comfort you when you fail.  
Family.  
They dry your tears when you're sad and do go out of their way to make you smile again.  
Family.  
When the world abandons you, they never leave.  
Family.

That's what a family is.  
That means I've never had a family.

I've always wanted one.

All I've ever wanted is a bloody family!

My Family.  
Lucius' family.

When the world knocks us down, they use us as a footstool to boost themselves up.  
Family.  
They don't see our best or worst. They see the act we've been putting on for years.  
Family.  
They condemn us when we fail, and demand more when we succeed.  
Family.  
They're the only reason I've ever cried.  
Family.  
They'll abandon us over nothing.

My Family.  
Our families.

* * *

I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I remember, I'm curled up in the chair and Lucius is shouting (though he can't yell very loud) at me.

_"Narcissa! Where are we? Why are you here? How did you find me? Who else knows? What's going on!" _He croaks, eyes wide.

"Hush up! You'll hurt your throat and someone will hear you!" I snap. I get up and go sit at the side of the bed and look at him.

"Where are we?" Lucius asks.  
"The Hogs Head in Hogsmead. No one knows we're here except Tobias." I answer.  
"How'd you know?" He croaks.  
"I didn't. I was just sick of people whispering about you being too ashamed to leave the house." I reply softly.  
"Huh?" He questions.  
I silently hand him the complimentary Daily Prophet from the room. Rita's article about us is covering the front page.  
He scowls through the entire article.  
"That's a load of dragon dung. You know that, right?" Lucius croaks.  
"Yeah, I do." I reply simply with a half-smile.

He reaches over and wraps me in a hug. I lay down and scoot closer to him.  
"Abraxas is going to kill Tobias." Lucius croaks.  
I nod in silence. "Since when did you call him Abraxas?"  
"Well he's not much of a father." He whispers.

And we fall. First into silence, then asleep.

* * *

When we wake up, we're both famished. So Lucius summons Tobias.  
But the elf doesn't come.  
And we both know why.

He's dead.

And it's because of us.  
We push the thought aside and focus on bigger problems; what are we going to eat?  
We can't apparate into Hogwarts.  
I however, am one of the three people in the world who can apparate into my house.  
Since Bella is no longer a resident, she has to floo into our manor. Not many people can do that either, though.  
"Someone will _hear_ you though! Apparation always makes some kind of noise!" Lucius stresses.  
"Not if you're any good at it." I smirk.  
So I apparate home and grab my spare cloak. As predicted, no one hears the faint _pop_ when I arrive.  
I could easily find Ripley in the house and get him to bring us food, but involving others is a bad idea. We can't afford a blabbing house elf.  
So I put on my hooded cloak (the hood obscures some of my face) and transfigure my hair to a dull red. Satisfied with my partial disguise, I turn on the spot and my bedroom disappears.

"Where'd you get this?" Lucius asks, examining the food I brought back to the room.  
"Downstairs. Except I entered from the street." I answer.  
"Did anyone recognize you?" He inquires urgently.  
"Nah. I had red hair and a cloak over my face. Lots of dodgy folk come into the Hogs Head, no one cast me a second glance." I reply. Satisfied, Lucius tucks into his meal. When I apparated back into the room minutes before, Lucius, not recognizing me, nearly cursed me.  
"So now what?" I ask as my companion eats.

* * *

Since we're not returning to Hogwarts until Lucius feels better, we don't have much to do except catch up.

"So did you actually believe Gibbon, Bulstrode and Kwaad that I was ashamed of you?" Lucius asks, referring to my recount of Athena, Bridget and Iris's confrontation before I left.  
"I wasn't sure, so I showed up at your house the second time. Only this time I was determined to see you, whether your elf answered the door or not." I reply.  
"I tried escaping, I really did. But I was too weak to apparate. I splinched my leg, see?" He says, rolling up his pant-leg. Underneath is is his knee, sporting an ugly, pussing wound. There's no chunk missing though.  
"Tobias tried to fix it, but he only got so far before you came." Lucius continues.  
"I don't have anything to fix it with. Bella mentioned something to use on splinches when she gave me apparating lessons... Oh, I don't know. Does it hurt?" I inquire, examining the scar.  
"Hurts like a banshee. That's why I couldn't run away either. Not to mention where would I run?"  
"I'll have to pick something up for that." I state, seeing the puss in the wound. Ew.  
"I'll be fine. Wort case scenario, I'll need a pimp cane when I'm old."  
I laugh, trying to picture Lucius with a cane. I think he'd use it more for show, but that's just me.

There's still one burning question on my mind.

* * *

**Back from the dead!**  
**Did anyone catch the cane reference? Yes, no?**


	20. Chapter 20

"Lucius." I ask. "Where's your mum?"  
There. It's out. The question that's been on my mind since Christmas. No taking it back now.

And we sit there, in silence. Listening to Lucius' heavy breathing, until the boy finally opens his mouth.  
"No one was supposed to know." He begins, voice tight. "Swear not to tell?"  
"I promise." I reply.  
"She, she's sick. But not usual sick. It's, something else."  
He's breathing too quickly. I take his hand to calm him.  
"She's got some, _filthy_ m-muggle disease!" He blurts out before burying his head in his hands. I let out a gasp.  
"St. Mungo's couldn't do a thing for her, so they insisted that if she didn't go to a muggle hospital she'd die. They took her wand away and left her there. I think it's called cancer? She looks worse and worse everytime I go see her, which is why I haven't visited in so long." I put an arm around my best friend.  
"It changed Dad. He's never been very loving, but now he's-mean. He'd hexed me a few times growing up, but it was never anything serious. Just like a slap across the face. And mum was always around to comfort me and calm dad down. But now she's gone, and Dad's a monster. If anyone finds out about mum's disease, he'll abandon her. Kick her right our of the family and erase every sign that she was ever here. She put up with his crap for twenty years, and just like that, he'll abandon her like she's nothing?"

"I'm sorry." I say quietly.  
"I miss her, but I can't stand that place." He sobs.

I think about Lucius' mum. Tall, blonde hair, absolutely gorgeous. Always graceful, she was. Despite the age lines on her face, she always glowed when her son was around. Was Abraxas Malfoy's temper the reason for those age lines?  
All I know is that my heart is breaking for the boy in my arms.

* * *

"So why didn't our parents warn us we were engaged before the public announcement?" I inquire.

We've been hiding for three days. So far the only excitement we've had was a battle against some bedbugs. This place is disgusting.

"They told us they wanted to surprise us, remember?" Lucius answers, attempting to levitate my shoe non-verbally from across the room.  
"We both know that's a load of dragon dung. What do you think the real reason is?" I ask.  
He thinks for a bit, then replies: "They were banking on your reactive skills."  
"Yeah, what?" What does _that_ mean?  
"You're an actress Narcissa, and you work like a machine under pressure. Your survival instincts are unlike anything I've ever seen. Your parents know that. If they had warned us in advance, we would've had time to think, run, make a plan, whatever it is that they're afraid of. If they drop something like that on us, you'd just react and put on a good show: because that's survival first."  
He knows me better than I thought.

* * *

_"C'n I clean yer room yet?"_ The 'do no disturb' sign hasn't moved since we got here, and the cleaning lady is ready to have a fit. Too bad.  
"The room's fine! Move along!" I yell through the closed door.  
"The boss man says you on'y paid fo three nights! I need mo monai if ya wanna stay longa!" She yells back.  
I grab a handful of galleons and open the door just enough to slip my small hand through. I hide my face behind the door though.  
"How many nights will that get me?" I ask, withdrawing my hand.  
"Three." She responds.  
"Good enough!" I close the door.

I feel a tap on my shoulder.  
I whirl around to find-  
my shoe. Floating in front of me.  
Lucius is sitting on the bed across the room, grinning mischievously.

* * *

The next day, I wake up in a peculiar situation.  
I'm currently wrapped around a sleeping Lucius, who has his arms around me.  
How cute.  
NOT.

My muscles are so tight as I carefully extract myself that I'm sure they'll snap. I successfully maneuver my way out of the unconscious embrace and get dressed in the gross little bathroom.

I re-enter the room and he's still asleep. Good. He'll never know.

"But Narcissa, you were so warm." Lucius groans, head still on his pillow.

Well shit.

* * *

Despite being tortured for who-knows-how-long, Lucius' recovery has been quick. We'll be able to leave in a few days. This is good; I don't want to get sick of each other.  
It's noon. We've been hiding for five days. Is anyone even looking for us?

My thoughts are interrupted by screams from outside.  
Lucius and I rush to the small window.

Below, the street has descended into chaos.  
The residents of Hogsmead are running in every direction, running into each other, knocking others over on their way. No one seems to know where they're running to in all the confusion.  
It's so hard to see through this dingy window!

At first, all I saw was a mass of bodies. But now I've noticed that not everyone is running.  
Several figures stand stock-still, each several feet away from each other. They all wear long, black, hooded cloaks.  
They all wear masks.

"Death Eaters." Lucius says, panicked.

"Death Eaters" I think as I fumble on my shoes. Lucius grabs my cloak and my hand before pulling me out the hotel room door after him.  
But I'm not really thinking about Death Eaters.

I'm thinking about Bellatrix.

* * *

**No reviews on chapter 19. Come on guys, you're killing me here! (Except Chibi-Lill of course!)  
**


	21. Chapter 21

I have seen fear.  
Not just fear of spiders, or of the school bitch. Not like fear of unwashed hair (Severus) or of and angry McGonagall.

I've seen real fear.  
And it's right in front of me.

Chaos has erupted in the streets of Hogsmeade. It's a particularly busy winter day, bustling with shoppers and businesspeople. I can see them all in the mass of desperate figures in front of me, everyone struggling, fighting their way through the throng of bundled-up bodies, all moving with an urgent sense of panic, yet all without direction.

The Death Eaters are among us.

We've all heard of them. The reports of small jobs completed in neighboring countries-small, but terrible-have preceded the group of Voldemort's followers. Everyone's heard about the masked figures who appear in public only to destroy, kidnap and kill.

These are the people I call my friends.

Lucius keeps hold of my hand as we survey the mayhem before us on the usually cheerful street. Everyone is running away from the masked figures in hooded cloaks, obviously Death Eaters. But there are several of them, dotted up and down the street, and more of them apparate from thin air, creating a frenzy of horrified migration away from them.

Why don't these idiots in the street just apparate out if they're so afraid?

They must be thinking the same thing, because several street-goers turn on the spot and disappear into the frosty air. The idea will catch on quickly.  
The Death Eaters all raise their wands and shoot a spell into the air. Everyone freezes. A strange bubble forms in the sky and around the town of Hogsmeade and then disappears.

O-kayy...

Remembering themselves, terrified passerby remember their attempts to apparate to safety. They turn on the spot and-  
nothing.

Everyone is turning in circles, trampling over their tracks in the snow: but no one is going anywhere. The collisions between bodies is worse than ever, as the entire town tries desperately to apparate, eyes closed, bumping into each other, becoming increasingly hysterical.

While everyone is occupied, the Death Eaters point their wands at all the street-level entryways. Doors slam, shutters clamp shut. Locked.

Uh oh.

And then, above all the crying, yelling and mayhem, we hear a scream.  
A long, loud, bloodcurdling scream. I can't see what's happening through the crowd, I assume someone was struck.

Then, the people of Hogsmeade begin to drop.

Spells flying, curses soaring, hexes hitting their targets.  
Chaos.  
People are crying in huddles, clawing at sealed doors, still running like chickens with their heads cut off.

One man begins scaling the wall of Scrivenshaft's Quill Shop, making for an upstairs window. A green jet of energy flies through the frosty air and strikes the man. He falls to the snowy ground in a heap.

I suddenly realize what Lucius and I are witnessing.

_"What should we do?"_ I yell to him.  
"I don't know!" He yells back.  
"Do you think they'll hit us?"  
"They don't know who they're hitting, they're just firing out spells! They don't know we're here!"  
"Lets make a run for the castle!" I declare.  
"The school?" Lucius asks.  
"Yeah! We'll be safe there!"

He nods, and, adjusting his grip on my hand, pulls me away from the sealed doorway of the Hogs Head. We make our way towards Hogwarts, sticking close to the walls to ensure we don't get devoured by the frenzied crowd.

And then, Lucius' hand is gone, and I'm slammed against the wall. It collapses around me, and I land in a heap.  
Where am I? Why aren't I walking? What am I supposed to be doing? Where's Lucius? Why does my arm hurt so much?

How much time has passed? I don't know. There's a lot more screaming now.  
I open my eyes. I see black people. Black people running up and down the street. Their clothes, their hair, their faces, everything. Even the snow is grey.  
And red. what isn't grey, is angry red, even the sky.

_What the devil is going on here?_

I sit up and try to regain my bearings.

I'm sitting on-_ouch!_-glass. Lucius is laying beside me, eyes open, surveying the situation. We're both filthy: tinted grey. Our clothes are torn.  
We're sitting in the display window of Spintwitches Sporting Goods. We didn't fall through a wall, we crashed through a window.  
But why?

I look up at the inferno across the grey street.  
The building is on fire.  
The blaze is hot. Too hot.

Lucius wobbles his way to his feet and hobbles a step onto the snowy street. He offers me his shaking hand and I take it.  
Then I let go.  
Pain rushes up my arm.  
I scream.  
There's a piece of glass the size of my palm sticking out of my right bicep.  
Lucius pulls me up by the waist and hauls me to my feet beside him in the street. He nearly drops me when he doubles over in pain.  
I scream again.  
There's an even bigger piece of glass sticking out of Lucius' back, under his left shoulder.

He grabs my left hand on my good arm with his right and we continue to-where were we going?  
I want my bed.  
School! We were going to Hogwarts.

We come to a larger crowd of survivors, they fill the town square. The majority of people who aren't curled up in the street are here, many still turning in circles. Most of the Death Eaters are here too, standing on the collapsed fountain in the center of the square. They address the crowd around them.  
"Quite trying to apparate, insolent fools! Our charms will hold!" A masked Death Eater shouts. He sounds familiar.  
"Don't bother running, you'll only hit the invisible barriers!" Cackles another. Again, I've heard this voice before.  
"There is no escape!" A third masked figure, much smaller than the others, shrieks with laughter.

I stop dead.  
I know that laugh anywhere.

Bellatrix.

* * *

**Did anyone catch the Starkid reference? Yes? No?**  
**I completely loved writing this chapter!**


	22. Chapter 22

The ashen-faced residents and visitors of Hogsmeade-some bleeding like us, all bundled up in newly torn robes and cloaks-are cowering in terror at the group of Death Eaters in front of them. More armed Death Eaters surround the group, so no one opposes them.  
The snowy, ash covered street is riddled with bodies. Are they dead, or just stunned? Murdered, or knocked out by the explosion?

The first Death Eater, the widest of the three speakers, speaks up again.  
"You may wonder why we have gathered you here." He begins. It's Dormond. Dormond Rookwood. I match the voice to the stocky build of the former Slytherin beater. Now who's the tall, skinny one beside him?  
"We have arrived to spread the good news!" The skinny one continues. "The news that-"  
"Our leader has arrived!" Bella interrupts. "The one you've all been waiting for! He, who will vanquish the filthy mudbloods and protect our magical society from corruption!"  
"The Dark Lord is looking for a loyal group of supporters! So go home and tell your family, tell your friends. Tell the Prophet and tell the aurors. Tell everyone!" Dormond yells.  
"Let it be known the he is the way of the future!" Bellatrix finishes, slightly more poetic than her male companions.

"Now remember, should you answer the call to the service of the Dark Lord, you will be rewarded. You and your families will be protected, safe from all harm!" The tall one-_Merlin, what is his name?_- cries. A panicked murmer rolls over the crowd.

"No takers?" Dormond asks. "Very well then. We'll give you time to think!" With that, he aims his wand at the crowd and fires.  
Spells are rocketing towards the group of victims from every Death Eater at every direction. The crowd that fills the square is dropping at an alarming rate.  
This is ridikulus.  
"Lucius, these are our friends! They won't hex us if they realize it's us!" I shout in his ear.  
"I don't recognize them in the masks!" He shouts back.  
"Bella and Rookwood are in the middle!"  
"Then lets go!"

Crouching low, we weave our way through the thinning crowd, every stride stepping over bodies.  
Suddenly, Lucius throws himself on top of me, causing immense pain on my arm.  
A middle aged woman behind us screams and falls to the ground.  
He just saved me.  
We refocus, get back up, and continue our journey towards the fountain.  
Suddenly, curses are raining upon us.  
I jump aside to dodge one, just as Lucius pulls me into a crouch to avoid another. We roll in opposite directions to avoid a nasty looking jet of yellow light, and evade a small purple explosion behind us.

"Those two troublemakers just wont go down!" Someone shouts.  
"Let me do it, incompetent idiots!" My head snaps up at Bella's voice.  
"Bella! It's us! Bella!" I shout, trying to get her attention.  
The smallest Death Eater comes closer, wand drawn, and studies me for a moment before recognizing me.  
"Cissy!" My big sister whispers. _"Where have you been?_ You shouldn't be here!" She straightens, and resumes her dominant posture, pointing her wand at us.  
"Who is this 'Bella' you speak of?" She barks.  
"M-m-my mistake madame!" I cry, going along with what ever Bella does. We can't have anyone find out that either of us are involved in this.  
"There's no way to get you out of this without raising suspicion. I'm going to knock you two out with a simple hex. It won't hurt. When you wake up and get questioned, just say you don't know any Death Eaters and had nothing to do with anything. This way you'll both look innocent. I'm sorry, Cissy." Bella says.

I grip Lucius' hand, and the last thing I see is Bellatrix's Death Eater mask before nothingness.

* * *

My arm is killing me.

Why is it so cold?

My eyes snap open to see-  
Lucius.  
Just Lucius.  
His face inches from mine, arms wrapped around me, keeping me warmer than most.  
This is definitely not how we looked when we got knocked out.

His eyes fly open in panic, but relax when they see me, then widen a bit again when they see me so _close_.  
I smile at the boy in my arms. He smiles weakly, then lets out a groan of pain.  
"What's wrong?" I ask.  
"My back." He answers.

Clearly, our movement hasn't gone unnoticed, because someone is now standing over us, and shouts: "Hey! Somebody come help me with these two before they freeze! They're bleeding all over the place!"

Maybe that's why I'm so cold. We're wet with blood during winter.  
And where's my cloak?

* * *

Bellatrix is one of them.  
Bella's one of their _leaders_.

"We've always been worried about Bellatrix. But she's never done anything beyond hexing someone at school.

It was Andromeda.

This isn't the blame game, it's the truth. Andromeda's betrayal pushed our big sister over the edge. Bella always had some crazy in her.  
But Andromeda made her worse.  
Now Bella's a "servant" of Voldemort. A killer.

I lost one sister in one unexpected, painful swipe. Now, I've lost the other in a slow, long, painful process of waiting. And I couldn't do anything about either of them.

I'm the sister who got left behind.

I finish explaining this all to Lucius, as we sit in St. Mungo's with a throng of other victims of the Hogsmeade attack, awaiting healers. Our wounds have been temporarily closed to prevent any more bleeding, but no one's had any time to pull out most of the glass.  
Can I _please_ have a shower?

A short, chubby witch with spiky blueish hair and bags under her eyes has been in and out of the room, clipboard in hand, since our arrival. She vaguely resembles a meatball.  
"Names?" She asks shortly, quill poised, ready to scribble our names onto the ever-growing list of names of victims on her clipboard. She's clearly asked this question too many times.  
"Lucius Malfoy and Narcissa Black." Lucius responds. The woman's eyebrow shoots up as she studies us over her clipboard, while the enchanted navy-blue quill scrawls our names down for her.  
"How old are you two again?" She asks.  
"Sixteen and seventeen." I reply.  
"Hm. I'll be back." The woman states. Without another word, she waddles away.


	23. Chapter 23

"Excuse me!" A sharp voice cuts into my empty mind. Lucius and I are harshly woken from our sleep.  
I open my eyes to see the short, stout witch with the bluish spiky short hair looking impatient in front of us. We must've fallen asleep in our chairs, my head on his shoulder, his head on my head, using each other as makeshift pillows. I look up at the annoyed witch. Her expression softens, but still isn't soft.  
"Seeing as we are overwhelmed here, you two will return to Hogwarts for treatment under the care of the school healer. You're leaving now, follow me." And she turns to leave. We follow.

Can someone just take the blasted glass out of my bloody arm?  
It's funny because it's actually bloody.

The woman walks quickly, with purpose. She doesn't like us, I can tell she's judging us. However, given that we're covered in blood and soot having just been attacked by Death Eaters, she doesn't quite know what to make of us. She must be a mudblood, thinking that all purebloods are out to get her.

I suppose this is a very strange situation. Death Eaters attacking purebloods is unheard of. Especially Blacks. We're not blood traitors like Arthur Weasley.

We come to a door reading "Volunteers." It's a fair sized room filled with various cheap desks, all covered in reports and files. It's currently overcrowded with witches and wizards-they must be the volunteers- rushing around, running past each other with stacks of parchement in their arms, memos flying overhead, writing things down, and filling in other volunteers on whatever information they have written down. The whole atmosphere is a bit chaotic. Clearly, St. Mungos isn't accustomed to so many patients-or volunteers- all at once. We follow the blue-haired witch to the closest desk, the surface of which is covered in various quills. Lucius' face is set in a permanent grimace of pain.

"There's been a portkey set up to bring you two back to Hogwarts. It leaves in..." The stout witch stops to check her watch. "One minute. Grab on now."  
We both touch the portkey-a cup that once held the quills that are now scattered all over the desktop-with the index fingers of our good arms. The short witch stands back and observes us in silence. We should probably thank her, but she signed up for this job. I'm in a particularly bad mood with my arm throbbing so much, so I say nothing. We remain in silence until I feel it. As though a hook just behind my navel had been suddenly jerked irresistibly forward. My feet leave the ground; we're speeding forward in a howl of wind and swirling color; my forefinger is stuck to the cup as though it's pulling me magnetically onward and then-

my feet slam into the ground and give way under me. Lucius and I, weak from our adventure, both fall to the floor; the cup clatters to the ground by Lucius' feet. At least I landed on my good side.

I don't need to look up to know where we are. We're currently laying on the floor of the hospital wing of Hogwarts.  
I hear a shriek, running footsteps, and find myself being hoisted up by my good arm.

"Into bed, both of you! You're worse off than I expected!" Hello to you to Miss Pomfrey.  
We obediently make our way towards two hospital beds and sit. Miss Pomfrey, the young matron, bustles around her office, gathering supplies. She's only been at Hogwarts for a few years. She takes her work seriously, which is why she left St. Mungo's in the first place, so I've heard. She was fed up with other healers not pulling their weight at work. At least she's not as nosy as the last guy who ran the hospital wing. I suppose Lucius and I are a sight, torn clothes, hair matted with dirt and soot, and wet from snow. We're streaked with blood and tinted with soot.  
Miss Pomfrey starts with me, so I hold up by arm for her to see. The young nurse cries out.  
My arm _does_ look pretty disgusting.  
_"How has no one attended to this yet?"_ She yells, clearly annoyed. "The glass is lodged into your arm and undoubtedly infected by now!" My bicep is a lovely array of colors. A medley of pruples, blues and greens, with soot everywhere and some unappealing yellowish gunk. Not to mention dried blood everywhere. The ground-in glass reflects the bright lights of the hospital wing.

Miss Pomfrey drops a crystal-blue liquid all over my upper arm with a needle-less syringe. "This'll numb your arm so I can get the glass out." She says before making her way to Lucius, who sits across from me on another bed. He gestures with his good arm towards his back. Miss Pomfrey cries out in frustration. "Honestly, you've had glass in your back since yesterday! I have a few words for St. Mungo's, just you wait..." She continues mumbling angrily to herself as she administers the numbing potion to Lucius' wound. My arm feels real funky now. I look away when Miss Pomfrey starts pulling glass out of my arm. It's too weird watching someone stick their gloved fingers into your arm and not feeling a thing. I can't wait until she hands me a dreamless sleep potion.

* * *

When I wake up, my arm is half-pain, half-numb. It's the strangest sensation, one that I don't like. I call for Miss Pomfrey and she gives me some pain-killing potion of who-knows-what. I down it without hesitation. Lucius does the same.  
I look down my bed. I'm filthy. The formerly white linens are now tinted grey and rusty brown. The only clean thing around me is my arm, washed and bandaged by Miss Pomfrey.

"You won't be attending class today." The latter states. "You'll see your families and then you have an appointment with the headmaster. You're to be questioned by someone from the auror office. But first, showers."  
I could kiss her.


	24. Chapter 24

_"CISSY!"_

Bella flings herself at me and hugs me. Despite the painkillers, it still hurts my arm a bit.  
"Bella. Arm." I grunt.  
"Oops! Wait, _what happened to your arm?"_ My sister cries, eying the white bandage wrapped around my bicep. Bella seems genuinely concerned about me. I guess the fact that I was missing for a few days might've worried her a bit, not to mention the guilt of leaving Lucius and I bleeding in the snow. I recount to her Lucius and I running near the wall and getting thrown into the window, then coming to, only to find everything across the street on fire.  
"That was us." Bella whispers for only me to hear. "Someone set Dervish and Banges on fire, but no one knew that the wizarding equipment inside would blow up. The explosion threw you two into the display window."  
"I still can't believe we broke a giant _window_." I say, moving the subject away from Bellatrix's involvement.  
"I know, right? SO what happened when you woke up?" Bella inquires, eyes on me, eyebrow raised.  
"Well, some guy shouted for someone to come help him get us to St. Mung-" I start.  
"Noooo, _before_ that." Bella insists, while smiling mischievously.  
"Before that I was unconscious in the snow..."  
"What's the first thing you saw when you opened your eyes?" She pushes further.  
"Lucius..." I know where this is going.  
"Oh reeaallyy?" Bella cries loudly like the teenage girl she never was. She hasn't been this excited since that day she flooed into my room to surprise me with her pregnancy.  
"And if I recall, the last thing I saw before blacking out was you!" I whisper, playing on her guilt.  
"Okay, fine. It nearly killed me to leave you bleeding in the snow and soot on the street like that. It took all my willpower not to take you with me, but you didn't have a mask on. People would've recognized you. So when you were both out, I made it seem like you were hugging! You looked less lonely that way. Plus neither of you had a cloak, so it was a bit warmer." Bella admits at last.  
"My cloak must've fallen off when I fell. But thank you." I smile. And I truly smile, from my face to the depth of my heart. I haven't lost Bellatrix. There is a heart beneath that intimidating exterior. She smiles back, and I realize jut how awful she looks.  
"Bella, when's the last time you slept? You look exhausted!" I note.  
"I'm so tired! I've been so stressed with, umm, work! And you were gone... _Oh my Rowling! Narcissa, where the bloody hell were you?"_ Bella hisses quietly, remembering that I've been missing for six days.  
"It's a long story..." I start.

"Narcissa!" My mothers sharp, emotionless voice pierces the air.  
It's the first time I've notice that Miss Pomfrey, Professor Dumbledore and two Ministry workers are also in the room-the Headmasters office-since Bellatrix arrived.  
My parents apparently have too, because they immediately pull out their concerned/emotional faces and pretend that they're happy to see me. I know they're not pleased about me running off, and I'm going to get it later. Oh well. Lucius is worth it.  
"_Darling_, we were _so_ worried about you! We _tried_ to come see you sooner but they _wouldn't_ let us! Oh my _dear_ daughter, you know we wanted to come as soon as possible. You know that, right?" Mother rambles on, arms around my shoulders. She might be overdoing it a touch.  
"Of course our baby girl knows we can't live without her! Come 'ere Princess!" Father grins, and I give him a hug.  
These are some of my fondest childhood memories, the rare occasions when Father was like this. Happy, playful, carefree. The rare times when he'd use my petname Princess. He's always been nicer than Mother, warmer, not as harsh, but it's worse when he's mad. Father's moods are more extreme than Mother's. When he's angry, yikes. But his good moods are better.

"I know you'd like to get started, but do you think you could give us a minute?" Mother asks in the sweetest voice I've ever heard her use.  
"Of course." Dumbledore smiles. The rest look like they want to refuse, but no one contradicts Dumbledore. The four of them file out.

"Now." Mother starts in as soon as the door closes, dropping the sweet motherly act. _"Where the bloody HELL have you been!"_  
"With Lucius." Is all I say. That was probably a mistake.  
"Do you know how he left home?" Mother asks.  
"I got the house elf to apparate him to a room in the Hogs Head." I admit defiantly.  
"Listen up, and listen _good."_ Father jumps in. "You are to tell no one about what you saw at the Malfoys."  
"Wait, you know what went on at the Malfoys?" I inquire.  
"Rodolfus popped over to see them a while ago and witnessed Abraxas and Lucius, um, _arguing."_ Bellatrix explains. "He left before they realized he was there."  
"Wait, he knew, _and he didn't stop him?"_ I cry in disbelief.  
"It was none of his business." Bella says, defending her husband.  
"Nor was it yours!" Father hisses.  
"He's my best friend, and my _fiancceee_!" I say sarcastically. "So yes, you've_ made_ it my business!"  
My family stiffens, and I know I've won.  
"Enough of this. Abraxas told the school that Lucius was on an extended vacation and then fell ill. We will stick to that story. If they ask, Lucius was feeling better and you went to see him. The two of you were returning to school through Hogsmeade when the Death Eaters showed up." Mother states. Without another word, she plasters on a smile and opens the door.

* * *

**Not much happened here, but I think this helped clear up any confusion and also let you get to know the Blacks a little more.  
GUESS WHO GOT THE HARRY POTTER ULTIMATE EDITION YEAR 2 FOR CHRISTMAS?  
**


	25. Chapter 25

"So, please explain to us, Mr. and Madame Black, if your daughter was gone for six days, why wasn't she reported missing?" The ministry wizard asks.  
"She wasn't missing. We knew exactly where she was." Mother says.  
"So why wasn't the school informed?" The ministry witch next to the wizard inquires.  
"Did the school not receive my owl?" Mother says, feigning shock.

This is going to be a bit of a mess to cover up.

My parents continue to lie to the Ministry officials, but Bellatrix catches my eye.

"Bella, are you alright?" I ask over the bickering adults. Everyone turns to look at my sister.  
"I-I-I.." Bella burst into tears.  
Her skirt is soaked with blood, and a pool of blood is gathering under her chair.  
What's going on?

Miss Pomfrey seems to understand, and she bursts into action.  
"Albus, I trust you to make sure that that blood is cleaned up." She says to Dumbledore. She points her wand at Bella's chair and it begins to float, causing my sister to scream. "Hold on Miss Black." The nurse says. Then, she walks out of the office, with Bella's floating chair in front of her, leaving the rest of us with our jaws on the floor.  
I'm first to recover, and I stand up and bolt after them. I run from the office and run straight into-  
Abraxas Malfoy.  
This is uncomfortable.

"Narcissa, what's going on with-" Lucius begins.  
"Come on!" I shout, grabbing his good hand with mine and pulling him with me.

* * *

We sprint to the hospital wing to find Bella in the only occupied bed, hysterically crying "Not again! Merlin, please not again!" Over and over. My parents rush in.  
"Miss Black, I know you're afraid, but I need you to answer one question for me." Miss Pomfrey says to my sister.  
"Miss Black, are you pregnant?" The nurse asks.

No way.  
Not again.

"Bellatix nods and burts into hysterics again.  
"Everyone out!" Miss Pomfrey shouts, waving us away with her hands. Lucius guides me out the doors with an arm around my shoulder.

* * *

"Narcissa, it's okay, it'll be alright-"  
"It's _not!_ It's not okay and it never will be!" Lucius is trying-and failing-to calm me down. We're in my dormitory in the dungeons. The other girls are in class. Even so, Lucius had to practically drag me here.  
"I want to go back." I say.  
"Not happening. Sitting outside the door wont help Bellatrix. And being with our parents wont help you." He replies. I want to argue, but I think of my parents and realize how much I don't want to be there.

"I'm going to check if someone brought my trunk or if I have to do it myself." The boy says, rising. He closes the door behind him. At first I'm glad, thinking I want to be alone. But then I find myself wishing he was back, and then being glad he's gone again. My emotions confuse me, and I don't like it.

I remember Bellatrix from earlier today. She was bubbly, happy: excited to see me. I had just gotten her back. A second miscarriage will destroy her.  
The thought of loosing Bella just as I got her back feels like being given a sugar quill for a minute and then having it yanked back.  
And I cry.

I've cried like this only twice: Andromeda's betrayal and Bella's first miscarriage, and Bellatrix's wedding. I lie on my bed and bawl.

I don't hear the door open, nor do I hear the sturdy footsteps crossing the room. I don't notice anything until I feel a tall frame beside me and strong arms around me.

He says nothing, but Lucius doesn't believe in pretty words. He thinks it makes more sense to show you he cares, rather than tell you about it.  
And I let him hold me.  
I let him see me the weakest I've ever been.

My best friend.

* * *

Our parents are gone and Bellatrix has returned home with Rodolfus.

Lucius and I didn't stick around the dormitory. We found our cloaks and hid out in the astronomy tower until everyone else had gone to bed.

"So where do we stand on this marriage business?" I asked.  
"If we don't bring it up, maybe our parents will be too busy to plan anything." Lucius offered.  
Is he serious?

"You thought the same thing when our parents came up with this crazy idea, so don't start thinking that ignoring the problem will make it go away. Time to be realistic, Lucius." I replied.  
"You're probably right." He sighed.

Neither of us really knows what to do. We finally come up with something:  
"I say we continue our little masquerade and see how it goes. If all else fails, we can just say 'I don't' at the alter and skip away arm in arm." Lucius said at last.  
"Rita Skeeter would have enough writing material for a month!" I laughed.

* * *

We went to bed after everyone was asleep and got up before they had awoken. The result was we completely surprised everyone when we arrived in the Great Hall for breakfast that morning.

Every head turns to look at us. Whispers run up and down the house tables. Everyone seems to know that we've arrived.  
We ignore the turned heads and make our way-arm in arm-to two empty seats at the Slytherin table.

Since our housemates are _still_ staring, Lucius and I pretend to have an interesting conversation. Our smiles are real though; the look on Evan's face is _priceless_!  
Class is going to be fun!

Dragon dung.  
Lucius and I don't get classes together.


	26. Chapter 26

Months have passed.

The snow has melted, and the Death Eaters have remained in hiding since the legendary Hogsmeade attack. The Prophet published a full three page special on it, including the names of the casualties.

We've gone back to our routine. The only difference is that Lucius and I are attached at the hip these days. After our "adventure," we sort of stuck together, it made us both feel better. Now it's unnatural without him.

It's Friday; classes have just ended, and everyone is excited for the coming weekend. I'm making my way to the dormitory after Charms when Lucius comes sprinting down the crowded corridor, dodging crowds of students, looking panicked. He reaches me, grabs my hand and begins pulling me down the corridor after him without a word. Our adventure forced us into a lot of handholding, so I'm getting used to this. Sort of.

"What's wrong?" I ask, trying to be heard over the many students around us.  
"My Mum."  
That's all he says. That's all he has to say.

* * *

We reach the dormitory at record speed. We drop off my books and change into our Muggle-acceptable clothing.

Then we sprint towards the gates.  
"Lucius! If we run, we'll attract attention!" I shout over the throng of students.  
_"Who cares?"_ He shouts back. This can't be good.

* * *

We apparate right into a muggle hospital room. I've never been in the muggle world before. I'm rather nervous. What if the rumors are true that breathing in the air causes your bones to rot from the inside?  
Lucius inhales deeply.  
That boy should be put in Gryffindor.  
I find myself picturing myself crying over Lucius' lifeless body in a casket.

_What is wrong with me?  
_Get a grip Narcissa!

I snap out of dreamland and survey the room. Lucius' eyes are fixed on only one thing: the occupied hospital bed.  
The occupant of the bed is skinny and bald. I don't recognize them. Why are we here?  
"Lucius, why-" I begin.

"Lucius?" A small voice is barely heard from across the room. The person in the bed is sitting up. Now I can tell that it's a woman.

No way.

"Who's your friend, Lucius?" The woman speaks again. Lucius swallows hard.  
"Narcissa." He gulps. "I believe you've met my mum."

The frail, bald woman in front of me is not anything like the regal, elegant, refined Mrs. Malfoy I met at parties. Her blond hair that was always done up in extravagant up-dos or vintage curls is but a memory on her bare scalp. She has no eyebrows or lashes around her now-sunken eyes, and her lips look deathly pale without their signature red lipstick smeared across them. Mrs. Malfoy has always had high cheekbones and a lean face. Now, however, her face has gone beyond "lean." Her cheeks have no substance, they are merely poorly hung drapes, hanging from her bones. I am looking at a woman who is literally wasting away. I've never seen anything like it.

Wizards don't die this way.

"I can hardly see you way over there, dear." The frail woman wheezes. I push Lucius towards the bed; towards his mother. She takes his hand.  
"I know you hate it here. It means a lot to me that you came back." She says to her only son.  
"I-I'm sorry Mum-" He whimpers.  
"Shh. You don't need to apologize for staying away. You're here now." The woman soothes.

"Pardon me."  
A voice from the doorway. We all turn to see a tall, meaty muggle healer with chocolate skin and her black frizzy hair in a bun.  
"I don't know how these two snuck in here, but they need to sign in before visiting." The woman snaps.  
"Oh Donna. Does it really matter that much?" Mrs. Malfoy pleads.  
Donna sighs. "If it were up to me, I wouldn't care, but the boss saw them and wants them signed in."  
"Lucius, you watched you father do it last time, didn't you?" Mrs. Malfoy says to her son.  
"Ugh. I can show him." Donna grumbles impatiently. "Come with me." She turns to leave, then stops. "You know you visiting rules are immediate family only. He's your son, now who's she?" Donna gestures her head towards me.  
What do I say

"This is Narcissa, Lucius' fiancee. Narcissa, this is Donna, my favorite nurse." Mrs. Malfoy smiles. Is that the muggle name for a healer? A nurse?  
"Aren't you two a little young to be getting married?" The "nurse" comments.  
Bitch, please. You don't even know the half of it.  
"You get paid to care for your patients, not judge them." Lucius growls. "Lets get this 'signing in' over with." Donna leaves with Lucius in tow, leaving me alone with Mrs. Malfoy.  
Crap.

"Forgive Donna. She's an opinionated woman, hard around the edges." She wheezes.  
"If that's what muggles are like, I want no part in them." I comment. I don't like that nurse.  
"They're not all like that, dear, I promise." I don't know what to say to that.

"So you're going through with the engagement then?" She croaks, breaking the awkward silence.  
"Huh? Oh, um yeah, I guess." I stutter.  
"I was trying to change Abraxas' mind, but I haven't been around recently, so I guess he want through with his plan." She sighs apologetically.  
What do I say to that?  
"I'm sorry, dear." She wheezes.

She's sorry. But, it's not her fault. My heart is breaking for this woman. Or, what's left of her. I take her frail, boney hand in between both of mine. It's cold as ice.

"It's not your fault. But Lucius is my best friend. I'd rather it be me than some undeserving slut." I smile. And it's true. The one thing keeping me sane through this is the thought that if he wasn't forced to marry me, his dad would find some bitch who just wants Lucius' money. I want my best friend to be happy.

"You're a gem, my girl. Lucius may not be easy to love, but it's worth it, loving that boy. He's lucky to have you." Mrs. Malfoy says quietly, grasping both my hands with both of hers. She has no grip. "I'm not going to be around much longer, but I feel better about leaving my son knowing he has someone who cares about him so much."


	27. Chapter 27

This woman astounds me. She's dying, yet she thinks only of her son.  
That, I think, is the best way to die.

Whatever illness that put Mrs. Malfoy in this hospital has aged her greatly, both physically and mentally. She can hardly move her boney joints, and she talks a bit like an old lady. She's as wise as one, too.

"Love is hard, Narcissa. You have to work at it, and the work never stops." Mrs. Malfoy says to me, grasping my hands.  
Oh.  
"But-" she continues. "But, it's always worth it. If you're lucky, it wont even feel like work."

"It helps if he's nice to look at, too." She winks. We both fall into a fit of giggles.

Lucius returns to the hospital room to find his mother and I, sitting on the bed, giggling like schoolgirls. I watch the immediate confusion on his face spread into a huge smile. I've never seen him smile like that. His entire face brightens, and his eyes are shining. It lights up the entire room.

"You two wasted no time in getting to know each other." He smirks.  
"I like this one. I think I'm going to keep her. You'll have to find someone else to marry, cuz this one's mine." His mum smiles.  
His expression at that makes us women laugh again.

* * *

We spend the rest of the afternoon with Mrs. Malfoy, and we don't leave until Donna insists for the millionth time that Mrs. Malfoy _needs_ her rest.

"What were you two giggling so hard about anyway?" Lucius smirks at me on the way back to the castle. We apparated right into the secret passageway, because neither of us care to see Hogsmeade for a long time.

"Just, girl stuff. Bunch of nonsense. Your mum's great" I reply. "What was the big panic to get there, though?" I inquire, changing the subject. I'd rather not tell Lucius about my conversation with his mum about love and _him_.  
His smile disappears faster than greasy little Severus when confronted with shampoo. His head snaps down, and he walks on without looking at me.

"Um... I had a free block last block, so I went up to the owlery to feed my bird. He had a message from St. Mungos." He goes silent.  
"And..?"  
"My mum should've died today."  
I stop walking.

"She's going to _die?_ _Today?"_ I sputter.  
"She was supposed to. But before we left, that nurse woman told me that she'd recovered. Just like magic, she said."  
I don't know what to say.  
"She said laughing the way you two were, it must've done something for my mum." Lucius finishes. He still hasn't looked at me. "You saved her, at least for awhile. I'm going to see her again soon, by myself. I wouldn't have gotten the opportunity if you hadn't saved her, so um, thank you."  
I say nothing, but give him a hug.

* * *

After that day, Lucius spent any waking moment he could with his mum. He oftenly brought me along, and we would laugh into the evenings until Donna would tell us it was time for Mrs. Malfoy's medicine. Donna had softened towards us, although I still don't appreciate her company much.

Lucius was a different person during this interim. He was lighter, almost. He was more relaxed, even in his posture. He walked with a more careless grace than before. When he sat in a chair, he would truly inhabit the chair. He would enjoy its comfort; it wasn't just a place to sit. All in all, Lucius was appreciating life and all of its small wonders, perhaps for the first time in his seventeen years. He smiled more, and it was a happy, careless smile. All his worries seemed to fade. I'd never seen him so happy.

I wish I could've lasted forever.

* * *

Transfiguration. What a rubbish class. I wouldn't be here if Transfiguration wasn't so bloody useful. I doubt McGonagall is this grumpy around her other classes.  
I mean, I'm sure she's grumpy around them too. She's just most foul around us Slytherins. I suppose Slughorn does the same thing to the other houses. He doesn't even hide his Slytherin favoritism.

Writing notes on theory for a full class is not my idea of educational. Lets practice some spells already!  
I look to my left: Tarmac is asleep on Vance's shoulder, with Vance's head resting on top of his, also dosing. They've created a Crabbe and Goyle sandwich of sorts.  
The oppressively boring atmosphere is shattered by the heavy door crashing open. The entire room whirls around to face the back of the class.

It's Lucius.

Wild eyed and panting, he stand there and scans the class, until his eyes find mine. He walks down the aisle to my desk.  
"Come with me. Hurry up." He whispers, pulling me up by my arm.  
"What is it?" I hiss.  
"Mum."

I am out of my desk and down the aisle at record speed, with Lucius by my side. McGonagall says something, but I don't even hear her. We're out the door before anyone else has time to react, leaving my classmates with their jaws on the floor in confusion.

* * *

**Short chapter today, expect more tomorrow. Maybe.**


	28. Chapter 28

_Monday, One week earlier:_

Narcissa's day started like any other day.

The youngest Black sister was the first awake in the sixth year girls dorm. Miranda and Petina had suggested that she move into their seventh year dorm, and Narcissa had seriously considered this. However, the formers would be graduating soon, and ditching her dorm mates, no matter how much they disliked her, would just make things worse next year. It'd be hard enough with Lucius gone.  
And just like any other day, Narcissa willed herself not to think about that.

Being the first one up, Narcissa took advantage of the free loo.  
Showered, made up and dressed, Narcissa exited the dormitory as her room mates began to disentangle themselves from their green and grey bedding. Outside the dorm, Narcissa ascended the spiral staircase that admitted her from the Slytherin girls dormitories to the Slytherin common room, with one wizard on her mind. The particular wizard of her thoughts lounged on the ornate velvet sofa, following _something_ in the air with his wand.

"Lucius, you look balmy. What are you doing?" Narcissa inquired, sitting in the chair parallel to the sofa occupied by her best mate.  
"Watch this then. I can make this fly do whatever I want of it." The eighteen year old replied.  
_"What did we say about Imperiusing bugs, Malfoy!"_ Narcissa hissed.  
"I still don't see what your deal is?" He drawled.  
"It's illegal and it's weird! You're master over a bug, git. Not very glamorous." She snapped.  
"Whatever." Lucius lowered his wand and the fly buzzed -confused- to the floor.

"How was the bitch squad today, then?" The wizard asked, referring to the Narcissa's three roommates.  
"Finished my shower before they got up. Never stuck around to chat, funny enough." The witch responded sarcastically.  
"Merlin knows why, with that cheerful trio on a Monday. Anyway, about Slughorn's delightful Slug Club Soiree on Wednesday; shall we be the dutiful betrothed and attend together?" Lucius inquired.  
"Hmmm. Tempting. However, I _was_ considering other offers..." Narcissa answered.  
Lucius shot her a look.  
"Oh, very well. Jugson will be so disappointed though!"  
"That'd better be sarcasm, Black."  
"Me? Never."  
"Let's go for breakfast, Black."

* * *

"Do you ever miss him?"

By supper, nothing interesting had occurred beyond some daft Gryffindor getting hexed by his (now) ex-girlfriend for cheating on her. Having finished eating, Lucius and Narcissa had made their way back to the dungeons to the seventh year boys dormitories.

"Miss who?" Lucius asked, looking up from polishing his broom on the floor.  
"Theo." Narcissa answered, referring to Evan and Lucius' one time best mate who had been expelled about a year prior. Theo Urqheart's empty bed remained in the dorm to this day. Four beds was not a full dorm to begin with. Now there were only three seventh year Slytherin boys.  
"Do you ever miss Tarmac and Vance?" Lucius asked, still polishing his broom.  
"That's different."  
"Not entirely."  
A pause.

"I miss them very much." The witch finally answered.  
"The deal with Theo is... complicated." Lucius said.  
"Because of Evan?"  
"Because of Evan."

He never got the chance to elaborate though, because Walden Macnair entered his dorm at that moment and addressed them.  
"Oi! You two! This doesn't much support the theory that you two spend every minute you sneak off alone shagging. Which is, always."  
"What do you want Walden?" Lucius sighed.  
"First of all, I live here. Enough games. I'm required to fetch you, Lucius."  
"Whatever for?"  
"You've been summoned."  
"By..?"  
"You know who I mean Malfoy."  
"'Fraid not." Lucius replied.  
"Tell your wife to leave."  
"Fiancee." Lucius corrected. "And absolutely not."  
"Malfoy..." Mancair growled.  
"Anything you have to say to me you can say to my 'wife'."  
"You-know-who."  
"As in-"  
"The Dark King himself."

Narcissa had been hoping, without realizing it, that this day would never come.  
"What does the Dark Lord want with Lucius?" She snapped, breaking her silence.  
"None of your business, blondie." Macnair snapped back.  
"See, that's the thing about us 'married' people. It _is_ my business!" Narcissa retorted.  
"Narcissa can hear it, Walden, now what does You-Know-Who _want?"_ Lucius cut in.  
"To meet you. That's all I know."  
"I'm not going if Narcissa can't." Lucius answered defiantly.  
"Don't be thick, Lucius!" exclaimed Walden.  
"Macnair, there are certain people who wouldn't be pleased to hear about your attitude." warned Narcissa. It's not often she had to remind wizards about Bellatrix.  
"I'm more afraid of him than I am of your sister, Black! If you're as smart as I thought, you would be too!" Macnair responded.  
He was right.  
"Ugh. Narcissa, he's right." Lucius ran his hands through his hair in frustration.  
"Lucius, come on!" She protested.  
"You-know-who is very powerful. Even _Bellatrix_ works for _him_. It's too dangerous to bring you, _especially_ uninvited."  
"He's right." Walden added.  
"Shut_ up _Macnair!" Snarled Narcissa.  
"Walden, give us a minute." Lucius adressed his roommate.  
"Hurry up with it then! Don't make him wait!" Said Walden, closing the door behind him. Narcissa whirled on Lucius.

"You said you wouldn't go if I couldn't!"  
"I shouldn't have said that, in front of Walden _or_ you. It was unrealistic."  
"Lucius-"  
"This guy is dangerous! Everyone knows that. I still can't believe they drug you into some cave just to ask where I was!" Lucius interrupted, more quietly. "You can't just walk into one of these things uninvited, Narcissa! Even if Bellatrix is involved with You-Know-Who."  
"If it's dangerous then I don't want you going either!" pleaded Narcissa.  
"It'd be far more dangerous _not_ to. Ignoring a direct invitation from the Dark Lord? Do I _look_ like a blood traitor to you?"  
"Lucius, please!"  
"Narcissa, you know you can't come! I'm sorry! You know I'm sorry!"  
"Lucius-"  
"I'm not stupid, and neither are you. I wont put you in danger." With that, Lucius exited the dorm, locking the door behind him.

_"Lucius!" _Narcissa continued yelling as she failed to work the door open. _"Alohamora!"_ She cried, and yanked the door open. She ran up the spiral stairs, ignoring her wet eyes and disheveled hair. She scanned the common room.  
Too late.  
He was gone.

* * *

**Greetings, loves! After what, 5 months? I dunno. But I'm here, and I'm finishing this story. You might notice that the writing style is different, but I think it's an improvement.**

**-IWishIWasAWeasley**


	29. Chapter 29

**Thanks always to Chibi-Lill, whom after all this time remains my ever faithful reviewer.**

* * *

He was gone.  
Lucius had run off to meet possibly the most dangerous wizard alive, not knowing what he wanted.  
And he'd left Narcissa behind.

It was only then that Narcissa realized that she was not alone in the common room.  
Tarmac Crabbe and Vance Goyle, Narcissa's former best mates, stared at her, stunned by her panicked, tear-stained face.

"Nars-" Tarmac started.

He never finished his sentence before the witch ran from the common room, retreating down the stairs from which she'd come up. She ran back to the seventh year boys dorm, threw herself onto Lucius' bed and clutched his pillow for dear life.

_She needed to calm down._

Narcissa Black was always the best at pretending out of her sisters. Hell, she was the best actress she knew, rivaled only by little Severus. Losing her cool like this wasn't like her.

Lucius would be fine. He was smart. He'd come back, just like Narcissa had. Bella would probably be there, she'd make sure nothing happened to him. She was overreacting.

Now calmed down, Narcissa held the pillow and steadied her breathing, until she fell asleep.

* * *

"Narcissa?"

Narcissa was awoken by a familiar voice. Lucius' pale face appeared in the pitch-black dormitory.

"You're okay." Narcissa said the first thing on her mind.

"Of course I'm okay."

But the relief of Lucius' safe return had already been overpowered by the memory of how he'd left in the first place.

_"What the bloody hell were you thinking?"_ She hollered, tossing the pillow at him. He sidestepped the air-born linen easily.

"Narcissa, you need to calm down!"

_"Calm down?_ You locked me in here and ran off on a date with the most dangerous wizard alive! _Calm down?"_ She shrieked.

"You're overreacting!"

"I know and I bloody hate it!"

Lucius' expression softened, and he sat down beside Narcissa on his bed.

"I shouldn't have left like that. But I made sure _Alohamora_ would work on the door."

"Why'd you bother then, if you weren't trying to lock me in here?"

"I didn't want you to catch up to us."

_"Why not?" _Narcissa shreiked.

"I WONT LET ANYTHING HAPPEN TO YOU!"

They both froze. Neither of them had expected Lucius to shout like that. He continued, at a whisper:

"I can't-I can't let anything happen to you."

Narcissa said nothing, and wrapped her arms around his waist: toned from years of quidditch. His strong arms snaked around her shoulders, gathering her to him.

"What did he want?" Narcissa broke the silence at last.

"He talks a lot. No wonder it takes so long between attacks." Lucius replied, and they both snickered.  
"We were in that same cave you described. Basically he's met nearly everyone of interest in our house already, except me. The name "Malfoy" catches peoples attention."

"Still don't know what he wants Lucius..."

The wizard lets out a sigh. "I've been invited to join the Death Eaters."

Narcissa sits bolt upright. "THE DEA-"  
She's cut off by Lucius' hand clamping over her mouth.

"Narcissa _please!_ You can't shout death eaters! Not ever!" He removed his hand from her mouth, taking her hands with his instead. "I know you're worried-"

"Worried doesn't begin to cut it! Lucius, we've _seen_ what they do! It's dangerous!"

"Do you even wanna know what I said?" Lucius was a bit annoyed now. Narcissa fell silent. "I said I'd think about it."

"But-"

"Would you shut up for a second? His reaction was he likes 'eager recruits.' So I told him I like to know what I'm getting into before I jump into something. I thought he was going to _Avada_ me right there! Bella did too, since she started babbling, trying to cover for me. He shushed her though."

"What did he do?" Narcissa inquired uneasily.

"He smiled. Sort of. As close as he can get. He said it was refreshing to find someone with a few brain cells, assuming those brain cells would be put to proper use, or something. You've heard the way he speaks. Only makes half sense" Lucius half smiled.

"Uh Narcissa?" The wizard continued.

"Yes?"

"You're hurting my hands."

They looked down at their still-clasped hands. Narcissa's knuckles were white -even compared to her pale porcelain skin. Lucius' hands were red where Narcissa was clutching them tightly. To tightly: her nails were leaving marks.

"Sorry." The witch released the wizard quickly. She then busied herself studying her knuckles, avoiding his eye.

"Hey." Lucius tilted her chin up with his pale finger so she was looking at him. "Sorry for worrying you."

She'd never realized how good looking he was until now, while being forced to look at him in the dark dungeon dormitory. He was a pale gold color, cast in shadow. He looked much like any Malfoy might look, yet the way he looked at her was something uniquely Lucius.

"Narcissa?"

Narcissa shook herself. She was staring. She settled back in his arms, so she wasn't looking at him anymore. That made it easier to put thoughts of just how _gorgeous_ he was from her mind. Easi_er_.

They held each other like that for a long time, as though afraid that the other would disappear if they let go.

* * *

Narcissa was awoken by two hands under her arms yanking her out of Lucius' grasp and onto the floor.

"What the hell is-" She started.

"Come on, Narcissa!" Someone was pulling her up and out of the dark dormitory.

"Wha?" She could hear the confused and half asleep Lucius, but she couldn't see him in the dark.

_"Lucius!"_ Narcissa kicked and screamed.

"Narcissa!" The witch was already being forced up the spiral stairs outside the dorm.

The blond boy finally emerged -panicked- from his room. He opened his mouth to shout, but his words never came. Narcissa's attacker pointed their wand and Lucius was blasted off his feet and into the stone wall to his right.

"LUCIUS!"

He didn't get up.


End file.
